[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 4518 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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116th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 4518

 To require Federal agencies to permit employees to telework full-time 
during the public health emergency relating to COVID-19, and for other 
                               purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                            August 10, 2020

 Mr. Van Hollen (for himself, Mr. Lankford, and Ms. Sinema) introduced 
the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee 
             on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To require Federal agencies to permit employees to telework full-time 
during the public health emergency relating to COVID-19, and for other 
                               purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Pandemic Federal Telework Act of 
2020''.

SEC. 2. TELEWORKING REQUIREMENTS FOR FEDERAL EMPLOYEES.

    (a) Definitions.--In this section--
            (1) the term ``agency'' means each authority of the 
        executive, legislative, or judicial branch of the Government of 
        the United States;
            (2) the term ``covered period'' means the period beginning 
        on the date of enactment of this Act and ending on the date on 
        which the public health emergency declared by the Secretary 
        under section 319 of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 
        247d) on January 31, 2020, with respect to COVID-19 (including 
        any renewal of that declaration) terminates;
            (3) the term ``Director'' means the Director of the Office 
        of Personnel Management;
            (4) the term ``eligible employee'' means an employee who--
                    (A) the head of the agency employing the employee 
                has determined is eligible to telework; and
                    (B) has not been officially disciplined for--
                            (i) being absent without permission for 
                        more than 5 days in any calendar year; or
                            (ii) viewing, downloading, or exchanging 
                        pornography, including child pornography, on a 
                        Federal Government computer or while performing 
                        official Federal Government duties;
            (5) the term ``employee'' means an employee of an agency;
            (6) the term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary of Health 
        and Human Services; and
            (7) the term ``telework'' has the meaning given the term in 
        section 6501 of title 5, United States Code.
    (b) Requirements.--
            (1) In general.--Notwithstanding any provision of chapter 
        65 of title 5, United States Code, the head of each agency 
        shall--
                    (A) permit eligible employees with respect to the 
                agency to telework on a full-time basis during the 
                covered period; and
                    (B) review, with respect to employees of the agency 
                for whom the agency head has not made a determination 
                described in subsection (a)(4)(A), whether such a 
                determination should be made.
            (2) Waiver.--The head of an agency may waive the 
        requirements of any provision of paragraph (1) that applies 
        with respect to an employee of the agency if the agency head 
        determines that there is a compelling reason for the waiver 
        that relates to the effective operation of the Federal 
        Government.
            (3) Plan for future outbreaks.--Not later than 1 year after 
        the date of enactment of this Act, the Director, in 
        coordination with the Secretary, shall establish a policy--
                    (A) to maximize the use of telework by the Federal 
                workforce during a period in which there is in effect a 
                public health emergency that the Secretary declares 
                under section 319 of the Public Health Service Act (42 
                U.S.C. 247d) on a date that is after the date of 
                enactment of this Act with respect to an outbreak of an 
                infectious disease; and
                    (B) that shall be designed to be implemented before 
                implementing any continuity of operations plan with 
                respect to any outbreak described in subparagraph (A).

SEC. 3. TECHNOLOGY MODERNIZATION FUND.

    Section 1078(b)(3)(B) of the National Defense Authorization Act for 
Fiscal Year 2018 (40 U.S.C. 11301 note) is amended by inserting ``, 
including by enabling or improving telework capabilities,'' after 
``efficiency and cybersecurity''.

SEC. 4. TRAINING AND MONITORING.

    Section 6503(a) of title 5, United States Code, is amended--
            (1) in paragraph (1)(B), by inserting ``and supervisors'' 
        after ``managers'';
            (2) by redesignating paragraphs (3) and (4) as paragraphs 
        (4) and (5), respectively; and
            (3) by inserting after paragraph (2) the following:
            ``(3) not later than 180 days after the date on which a 
        manager or supervisor described in paragraph (1)(B) is 
        appointed to a position as such a manager or supervisor, the 
        manager or supervisor has completed interactive telework 
        training that includes instruction relating to--
                    ``(A) the benefits of telework;
                    ``(B) technology used by the agency to facilitate 
                telework;
                    ``(C) strategies for engaging employees who 
                telework;
                    ``(D) performance management in the virtual 
                workplace; and
                    ``(E) information and security protections for 
                information and information systems used during 
                telework;''.
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