Congressional Record, Volume 156 Issue 151 (Thursday, November 18, 2010)

[Congressional Record Volume 156, Number 151 (Thursday, November 18, 2010)]
[House]
[Pages H7560-H7569]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

TELEWORK ENHANCEMENT ACT OF 2010

Mr. LYNCH. Madam Speaker, pursuant to House Resolution 1721, I call
up the bill (H.R. 1722) to improve teleworking in executive agencies by
developing a telework program that allows employees to telework at
least 20 percent of the hours worked in every 2 administrative
workweeks, and for other purposes, with the Senate amendment thereto,
and I have a motion at the desk.
The Clerk read the title of the bill.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Clerk will designate the Senate
amendment.
The text of the Senate amendment is as follows:

Strike all after the enacting clause and insert the
following:

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

This Act may be cited as the ``Telework Enhancement Act of
2010''.

SEC. 2. TELEWORK.

(a) In General.--Part III of title 5, United States Code,
is amended by inserting after chapter 63 the following:

``CHAPTER 65--TELEWORK

``Sec.
``6501. Definitions.
``6502. Executive agencies telework requirement.
``6503. Training and monitoring.
``6504. Policy and support.
``6505. Telework Managing Officer.
``6506. Reports.

``Sec. 6501. Definitions

``In this chapter:
``(1) Employee.--The term `employee' has the meaning given
that term under section 2105.
``(2) Executive agency.--Except as provided in section
6506, the term `executive agency' has the meaning given that
term under section 105.
``(3) Telework.--The term `telework' or `teleworking'
refers to a work flexibility arrangement under which an
employee performs the duties and responsibilities of such
employee's position, and other authorized activities, from an
approved worksite other than the location from which the
employee would otherwise work.

``Sec. 6502. Executive agencies telework requirement

``(a) Telework Eligibility.--
``(1) In general.--Not later than 180 days after the date
of enactment of this chapter, the head of each executive
agency shall--
``(A) establish a policy under which eligible employees of
the agency may be authorized to telework;
``(B) determine the eligibility for all employees of the
agency to participate in telework; and
``(C) notify all employees of the agency of their
eligibility to telework.
``(2) Limitation.--An employee may not telework under a
policy established under this section if--
``(A) the employee has been officially disciplined for
being absent without permission for more than 5 days in any
calendar year; or
``(B) the employee has been officially disciplined for
violations of subpart G of the Standards of Ethical Conduct
for Employees of the Executive Branch for viewing,
downloading, or exchanging pornography, including child
pornography, on a Federal Government computer or while
performing official Federal Government duties.
``(b) Participation.--The policy described under subsection
(a) shall--
``(1) ensure that telework does not diminish employee
performance or agency operations;
``(2) require a written agreement that--
``(A) is entered into between an agency manager and an
employee authorized to telework, that outlines the specific
work arrangement that is agreed to; and
``(B) is mandatory in order for any employee to participate
in telework;
``(3) provide that an employee may not be authorized to
telework if the performance of that employee does not comply
with the terms of the written agreement between the agency
manager and that employee;

[[Page H7561]]

``(4) except in emergency situations as determined by the
head of an agency, not apply to any employee of the agency
whose official duties require on a daily basis (every work
day)--
``(A) direct handling of secure materials determined to be
inappropriate for telework by the agency head; or
``(B) on-site activity that cannot be handled remotely or
at an alternate worksite; and
``(5) be incorporated as part of the continuity of
operations plans of the agency in the event of an emergency.

``Sec. 6503. Training and monitoring

``(a) In General.--The head of each executive agency shall
ensure that--
``(1) an interactive telework training program is provided
to--
``(A) employees eligible to participate in the telework
program of the agency; and
``(B) all managers of teleworkers;
``(2) except as provided under subsection (b), an employee
has successfully completed the interactive telework training
program before that employee enters into a written agreement
to telework described under section 6502(b)(2);
``(3) teleworkers and nonteleworkers are treated the same
for purposes of--
``(A) periodic appraisals of job performance of employees;
``(B) training, rewarding, reassigning, promoting, reducing
in grade, retaining, and removing employees;
``(C) work requirements; or
``(D) other acts involving managerial discretion; and
``(4) when determining what constitutes diminished employee
performance, the agency shall consult the performance
management guidelines of the Office of Personnel Management.
``(b) Training Requirement Exemptions.--The head of an
executive agency may provide for an exemption from the
training requirements under subsection (a), if the head of
that agency determines that the training would be unnecessary
because the employee is already teleworking under a work
arrangement in effect before the date of enactment of this
chapter.

``Sec. 6504. Policy and support

``(a) Agency Consultation With the Office of Personnel
Management.--Each executive agency shall consult with the
Office of Personnel Management in developing telework
policies.
``(b) Guidance and Consultation.--The Office of Personnel
Management shall--
``(1) provide policy and policy guidance for telework in
the areas of pay and leave, agency closure, performance
management, official worksite, recruitment and retention, and
accommodations for employees with disabilities;
``(2) assist each agency in establishing appropriate
qualitative and quantitative measures and teleworking goals;
and
``(3) consult with--
``(A) the Federal Emergency Management Agency on policy and
policy guidance for telework in the areas of continuation of
operations and long-term emergencies;
``(B) the General Services Administration on policy and
policy guidance for telework in the areas of telework
centers, travel, technology, equipment, and dependent care;
and
``(C) the National Archives and Records Administration on
policy and policy guidance for telework in the areas of
efficient and effective records management and the
preservation of records, including Presidential and Vice-
Presidential records.
``(c) Security Guidelines.--
``(1) In general.--The Director of the Office of Management
and Budget, in coordination with the Department of Homeland
Security and the National Institute of Standards and
Technology, shall issue guidelines not later than 180 days
after the date of the enactment of this chapter to ensure the
adequacy of information and security protections for
information and information systems used while teleworking.
``(2) Contents.--Guidelines issued under this subsection
shall, at a minimum, include requirements necessary to--
``(A) control access to agency information and information
systems;
``(B) protect agency information (including personally
identifiable information) and information systems;
``(C) limit the introduction of vulnerabilities;
``(D) protect information systems not under the control of
the agency that are used for teleworking;
``(E) safeguard wireless and other telecommunications
capabilities that are used for teleworking; and
``(F) prevent inappropriate use of official time or
resources that violates subpart G of the Standards of Ethical
Conduct for Employees of the Executive Branch by viewing,
downloading, or exchanging pornography, including child
pornography.
``(d) Continuity of Operations Plans.--
``(1) Incorporation into continuity of operations plans.--
Each executive agency shall incorporate telework into the
continuity of operations plan of that agency.
``(2) Continuity of operations plans supersede telework
policy.--During any period that an executive agency is
operating under a continuity of operations plan, that plan
shall supersede any telework policy.
``(e) Telework Website.--The Office of Personnel Management
shall--
``(1) maintain a central telework website; and
``(2) include on that website related--
``(A) telework links;
``(B) announcements;
``(C) guidance developed by the Office of Personnel
Management; and
``(D) guidance submitted by the Federal Emergency
Management Agency, and the General Services Administration to
the Office of Personnel Management not later than 10 business
days after the date of submission.
``(f) Policy Guidance on Purchasing Computer Systems.--Not
later than 120 days after the date of the enactment of this
chapter, the Director of the Office of Management and Budget
shall issue policy guidance requiring each executive agency
when purchasing computer systems, to purchase computer
systems that enable and support telework, unless the head of
the agency determines that there is a mission-specific reason
not to do so.

``Sec. 6505. Telework Managing Officer

``(a) Designation.--The head of each executive agency shall
designate an employee of the agency as the Telework Managing
Officer. The Telework Managing Officer shall be established
within the Office of the Chief Human Capital Officer or a
comparable office with similar functions.
``(b) Duties.--The Telework Managing Officer shall--
``(1) be devoted to policy development and implementation
related to agency telework programs;
``(2) serve as--
``(A) an advisor for agency leadership, including the Chief
Human Capital Officer;
``(B) a resource for managers and employees; and
``(C) a primary agency point of contact for the Office of
Personnel Management on telework matters; and
``(3) perform other duties as the applicable delegating
authority may assign.
``(c) Status Within Agency.--The Telework Managing Officer
of an agency shall be a senior official of the agency who has
direct access to the head of the agency.
``(d) Rule of Construction Regarding Status of Telework
Managing Officer.--Nothing in this section shall be construed
to prohibit an individual who holds another office or
position in an agency from serving as the Telework Managing
Officer for the agency under this chapter.

``Sec. 6506. Reports

``(a) Definition.--In this section, the term `executive
agency' shall not include the Government Accountability
Office.
``(b) Reports by the Office of Personnel Management.--
``(1) Submission of reports.--Not later than 18 months
after the date of enactment of this chapter and on an annual
basis thereafter, the Director of the Office of Personnel
Management, in consultation with Chief Human Capital Officers
Council, shall--
``(A) submit a report addressing the telework programs of
each executive agency to--
``(i) the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental
Affairs of the Senate; and
``(ii) the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform of
the House of Representatives; and
``(B) transmit a copy of the report to the Comptroller
General and the Office of Management and Budget.
``(2) Contents.--Each report submitted under this
subsection shall include--
``(A) the degree of participation by employees of each
executive agency in teleworking during the period covered by
the report (and for each executive agency whose head is
referred to under section 5312, the degree of participation
in each bureau, division, or other major administrative unit
of that agency), including--
``(i) the total number of employees in the agency;
``(ii) the number and percent of employees in the agency
who are eligible to telework; and
``(iii) the number and percent of eligible employees in the
agency who are teleworking--

``(I) 3 or more days per pay period;
``(II) 1 or 2 days per pay period;
``(III) once per month; and
``(IV) on an occasional, episodic, or short-term basis;

``(B) the method for gathering telework data in each
agency;
``(C) if the total number of employees teleworking is 10
percent higher or lower than the previous year in any agency,
the reasons for the positive or negative variation;
``(D) the agency goal for increasing participation to the
extent practicable or necessary for the next reporting
period, as indicated by the percent of eligible employees
teleworking in each frequency category described under
subparagraph (A)(iii);
``(E) an explanation of whether or not the agency met the
goals for the last reporting period and, if not, what actions
are being taken to identify and eliminate barriers to
maximizing telework opportunities for the next reporting
period;
``(F) an assessment of the progress each agency has made in
meeting agency participation rate goals during the reporting
period, and other agency goals relating to telework, such as
the impact of telework on--
``(i) emergency readiness;
``(ii) energy use;
``(iii) recruitment and retention;
``(iv) performance;
``(v) productivity; and
``(vi) employee attitudes and opinions regarding telework;
and

[[Page H7562]]

``(G) the best practices in agency telework programs.
``(c) Comptroller General Reports.--
``(1) Report on government accountability office telework
program.--
``(A) In general.--Not later than 18 months after the date
of enactment of this chapter and on an annual basis
thereafter, the Comptroller General shall submit a report
addressing the telework program of the Government
Accountability Office to--
``(i) the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental
Affairs of the Senate; and
``(ii) the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform of
the House of Representatives.
``(B) Contents.--Each report submitted by the Comptroller
General shall include the same information as required under
subsection (b) applicable to the Government Accountability
Office.
``(2) Report to congress on office of personnel management
report.--Not later than 6 months after the submission of the
first report to Congress required under subsection (b), the
Comptroller General shall review that report required under
subsection (b) and submit a report to Congress on the
progress each executive agency has made towards the goals
established under section 6504(b)(2).
``(d) Chief Human Capital Officer Reports.--
``(1) In general.--Each year the Chief Human Capital
Officer of each executive agency, in consultation with the
Telework Managing Officer of that agency, shall submit a
report to the Chair and Vice Chair of the Chief Human Capital
Officers Council on agency management efforts to promote
telework.
``(2) Review and inclusion of relevant information.--The
Chair and Vice Chair of the Chief Human Capital Officers
Council shall--
``(A) review the reports submitted under paragraph (1);
``(B) include relevant information from the submitted
reports in the annual report to Congress required under
subsection (b); and
``(C) use that relevant information for other purposes
related to the strategic management of human capital.''.
(b) Technical and Conforming Amendments.--
(1) Table of chapters.--The table of chapters for part III
of title 5, United States Code, is amended by inserting after
the item relating to chapter 63 the following:

65. Telework...................................................6501....

(2) Telework coordinators.--

(A) Appropriations act, 2003.--Section 623 of the
Departments of Commerce, Justice, and State, the Judiciary,
and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2003 (Public Law
108-7; 117 Stat. 103) is amended by striking ``designate a
`Telework Coordinator' to be'' and inserting ``designate a
Telework Managing Officer to be''.
(B) Appropriations act, 2004.--Section 627 of the
Departments of Commerce, Justice, and State, the Judiciary,
and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2004 (Public Law
108-199; 118 Stat. 99) is amended by striking ``designate a
`Telework Coordinator' to be'' and inserting ``designate a
Telework Managing Officer to be''.
(C) Appropriations act, 2005.--Section 622 of the
Departments of Commerce, Justice, and State, the Judiciary,
and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2005 (Public Law
108-447; 118 Stat. 2919) is amended by striking ``designate a
`Telework Coordinator' to be'' and inserting ``designate a
Telework Managing Officer to be''.
(D) Appropriations act, 2006.--Section 617 of the Science,
State, Justice, Commerce, and Related Agencies Appropriations
Act, 2006 (Public Law 109-108; 119 Stat. 2340) is amended by
striking ``maintain a `Telework Coordinator' to be'' and
inserting ``maintain a Telework Managing Officer to be''.

SEC. 3. AUTHORITY FOR TELEWORK TRAVEL EXPENSES TEST PROGRAMS.

(a) In General.--Chapter 57 of title 5, United States Code,
is amended by inserting after section 5710 the following:

``Sec. 5711. Authority for telework travel expenses test
programs

``(a) Except as provided under subsection (f)(1), in this
section, the term `appropriate committees of Congress'
means--
``(1) the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental
Affairs of the Senate; and
``(2) the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform of
the House of Representatives.
``(b)(1) Notwithstanding any other provision of this
subchapter, under a test program which the Administrator of
General Services determines to be in the interest of the
Government and approves, an employing agency may pay through
the proper disbursing official any necessary travel expenses
in lieu of any payment otherwise authorized or required under
this subchapter for employees participating in a telework
program. Under an approved test program, an agency may
provide an employee with the option to waive any payment
authorized or required under this subchapter. An agency shall
include in any request to the Administrator for approval of
such a test program an analysis of the expected costs and
benefits and a set of criteria for evaluating the
effectiveness of the program.
``(2) Any test program conducted under this section shall
be designed to enhance cost savings or other efficiencies
that accrue to the Government.
``(3) Under any test program, if an agency employee
voluntarily relocates from the pre-existing duty station of
that employee, the Administrator may authorize the employing
agency to establish a reasonable maximum number of occasional
visits to the pre-existing duty station before that employee
is eligible for payment of any accrued travel expenses by
that agency.
``(4) Nothing in this section is intended to limit the
authority of any agency to conduct test programs.
``(c) The Administrator shall transmit a copy of any test
program approved by the Administrator under this section, and
the rationale for approval, to the appropriate committees of
Congress at least 30 days before the effective date of the
program.
``(d)(1) An agency authorized to conduct a test program
under subsection (b) shall provide to the Administrator, the
Telework Managing Officer of that agency, and the appropriate
committees of Congress a report on the results of the program
not later than 3 months after completion of the program.
``(2) The results in a report described under paragraph (1)
may include--
``(A) the number of visits an employee makes to the pre-
existing duty station of that employee;
``(B) the travel expenses paid by the agency;
``(C) the travel expenses paid by the employee; or
``(D) any other information the agency determines useful to
aid the Administrator, Telework Managing Officer, and
Congress in understanding the test program and the impact of
the program.
``(e) No more than 10 test programs under this section may
be conducted simultaneously.
``(f)(1) In this subsection, the term `appropriate
committee of Congress' means--
``(A) the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental
Affairs of the Senate;
``(B) the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform of
the House of Representatives;
``(C) the Committee on the Judiciary of the Senate; and
``(D) the Committee on the Judiciary of the House of
Representatives.
``(2) The Patent and Trademark Office shall conduct a test
program under this section, including the provision of
reports in accordance with subsection (d)(1).
``(3) In conducting the program under this subsection, the
Patent and Trademark Office may pay any travel expenses of an
employee for travel to and from a Patent and Trademark Office
worksite or provide an employee with the option to waive any
payment authorized or required under this subchapter, if--
``(A) the employee is employed at a Patent and Trademark
Office worksite and enters into an approved telework
arrangement;
``(B) the employee requests to telework from a location
beyond the local commuting area of the Patent and Trademark
Office worksite; and
``(C) the Patent and Trademark Office approves the
requested arrangement for reasons of employee convenience
instead of an agency need for the employee to relocate in
order to perform duties specific to the new location.
``(4)(A) The Patent and Trademark Office shall establish an
oversight committee comprising an equal number of members
representing management and labor, including representatives
from each collective bargaining unit.
``(B) The oversight committee shall develop the operating
procedures for the program under this subsection to--
``(i) provide for the effective and appropriate functioning
of the program; and
``(ii) ensure that--
``(I) reasonable technological or other alternatives to
employee travel are used before requiring employee travel,
including teleconferencing, videoconferencing or internet-
based technologies;
``(II) the program is applied consistently and equitably
throughout the Patent and Trademark Office; and
``(III) an optimal operating standard is developed and
implemented for maximizing the use of the telework
arrangement described under paragraph (2) while minimizing
agency travel expenses and employee travel requirements.
``(5)(A) The test program under this subsection shall be
designed to enhance cost savings or other efficiencies that
accrue to the Government.
``(B) The Director of the Patent and Trademark Office
shall--
``(i) prepare an analysis of the expected costs and
benefits and a set of criteria for evaluating the
effectiveness of the program; and
``(ii) before the test program is implemented, submit the
analysis and criteria to the Administrator of General
Services and to the appropriate committees of Congress.
``(C) With respect to an employee of the Patent and
Trademark Office who voluntarily relocates from the pre-
existing duty station of that employee, the operating
procedures of the program may include a reasonable maximum
number of occasional visits to the pre-existing duty station
before that employee is eligible for payment of any accrued
travel expenses by the Office.
``(g) The authority to conduct test programs under this
section shall expire 7 years after the date of the enactment
of the Telework Enhancement Act of 2010.''.
(b) Technical and Conforming Amendment.--The table of
sections for chapter 57 of

[[Page H7563]]

title 5, United States Code, is amended by inserting after
the item relating to section 5710 the following:

``5711. Authority for telework travel expenses test programs.''.

SEC. 4. TELEWORK RESEARCH.

(a) Research by OPM on Telework.--The Director of the
Office of Personnel Management shall--
(1) research the utilization of telework by public and
private sector entities that identify best practices and
recommendations for the Federal Government;
(2) review the outcomes associated with an increase in
telework, including the effects of telework on energy
consumption, job creation and availability, urban
transportation patterns, and the ability to anticipate the
dispersal of work during periods of emergency; and
(3) make any studies or reviews performed under this
subsection available to the public.
(b) Use of Contract To Carry Out Research.--The Director of
the Office of Personnel Management may carry out subsection
(a) under a contract entered into by the Director using
competitive procedures under section 303 of the Federal
Property and Administrative Services Act of 1949 (41 U.S.C.
253).
(c) Use of Other Federal Agencies.--The heads of Federal
agencies with relevant jurisdiction over the subject matters
in subsection (a)(2) shall work cooperatively with the
Director of the Office of Personnel Management to carry out
that subsection, if the Director determines that coordination
is necessary to fulfill obligations under that subsection.

Motion to Concur

The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Clerk will report the motion.
The Clerk read as follows:

Mr. Lynch moves that the House concur in the Senate
amendment to H.R. 1722.

The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to House Resolution 1721, the
motion shall be debatable for 1 hour equally divided and controlled by
the chair and ranking member of the Committee on Oversight and
Government Reform.
The gentleman from Massachusetts (Mr. Lynch) and the gentleman from
California (Mr. Issa) each will control 30 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Massachusetts.

General Leave

Mr. LYNCH. Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members
may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their
remarks and add any extraneous material.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentleman from Massachusetts?
There was no objection.
Mr. LYNCH. I now yield myself such time as I may consume.
Madam Speaker, as chairman of the House subcommittee with
jurisdiction over the Federal workforce, Postal Service, and District
of Columbia, I rise in support of H.R. 1722, the Telework Enhancement
Act of 2010. I am pleased to offer for consideration this bipartisan
legislation which seeks to improve and expand the access to telework
for Federal employees in the executive branch, as well as for
government employees within the Government Accountability Office.
The cost-saving measure before us today was introduced by Congressman
John Sarbanes of Maryland, along with myself and Representatives Frank
Wolf, Gerry Connolly, Jim Moran, Dutch Ruppersberger, and Danny Davis
back in March of 2009. This is the third time this good governance bill
has been debated on the House floor.
This past July, the House considered and passed this legislation
which subsequently was amended and passed by unanimous consent by our
Senate counterparts in September. I would like to take a moment to
thank Chairman Akaka and Senator Voinovich on this legislation and to
acknowledge Senator Voinovich's dedication to and respect for Federal
employees. The Senator will be missed greatly by the Federal community.
Madam Speaker, despite the evolving nature of the way the Federal
Government conducts its affairs, telework, which allows an employee to
regularly perform work in a remote location, continues to be woefully
underutilized by Federal agencies. Private and public sector employers
that offer telework consistently experience increased productivity and
retention rates, thereby lowering an employer's operating costs.
More specifically, independent research states that increased use of
telework saves employers money by reducing the amount of needed office
space, parking facilities, and building maintenance fees and utilities.
Given that the Federal Government owns or leases over 8,600 individual
buildings and spends upwards of $500 billion as a landlord annually,
this legislation will translate into real-world savings in the near
future.
Successful Federal telework programs such as those used by the
General Services Administration and the Defense Information Systems
Agency show how telework enhances an agency's customer's service
offering for our citizens while at the same time achieving greater cost
efficiencies and lowering taxpayer costs.
H.R. 1722 provides for increased numbers of Federal employees to
participate in telework programs by requiring agencies to develop
comprehensive telework policies within 1 year for authorized employees
and by directing the Office of Personnel Management to develop
regulations on overall telework policies and to annually evaluate and
report on agency telework programs.
H.R. 1722 also seeks to elevate the importance of incorporating
telework into the community of operations planning of agencies in order
to ensure that they are better prepared to maintain essential
operations during emergencies. I am confident all of my colleagues
appreciate the need for agencies to be able to operate during a time of
crisis when access to office buildings might be impossible.
A less distressing, but by no means less critical, role for the
telework program is to assist agencies in carrying out their missions
during difficult weather conditions. Office of Personnel Management
Director John Berry estimates that the use of telework reduced the
estimated cost of lost productivity during the 2009 snowstorms here in
the Nation's capital by approximately $30 million per day.

{time} 1200

According to the Congressional Budget Office, the legislation before
us is PAYGO-neutral, meaning there is no mandatory spending in this
bill. The Congressional Budget Office does, however, estimate that
approximately $28 million will be needed over 5 years to implement the
requirement in the bill. However, it is unlikely that any additional
appropriations will be necessary because Federal agencies can
reasonably implement the bill's requirements from existing budgets.
While you may hear from colleagues on the other side of the aisle
that this telework is a costly and unnecessary legislative mandate, I
must point out that the Congressional Budget Office estimate they are
relying on looks only at the implementation costs and not at the bill's
potential cost savings. A closer look at the potential benefits of
increased telework will reveal that H.R. 1722 actually saves the
government money down the road, which has also been the case among
telework-embracing private sector companies such as IBM, which, for
example, reports that it saves $56 million a year in reduced office
space costs by permitting its employees to telework.
In fact, we only have to look at the Patent and Trademark Office to
see such advantages within government. The Patent and Trademark Office,
which has been an agency leader in telework efforts, reports that it
was able to consolidate nearly 50,000 square feet of space, thereby
avoiding $1.5 million in rent per year through greater use of telework.
Additionally, the agency avoided securing $11 million in additional
office space as a direct result of the agency's telework hoteling
programs. Private-sector companies are seeing similar benefits from
increased telework. We can expect many other government agencies to
begin to reap the benefits of lower overhead costs because of this
bill.
Telework also leads to greater worker productivity. Greater
productivity in the Federal workforce provides an important benefit to
the taxpayer. For example, the Patent and Trademark Office also reports
that increased utilization of telework has reduced the amount of sick
leave taken by its employees and increased worker retention. As we have
seen, the government can benefit from this bill by lowering overhead
costs and increasing worker productivity. This is a win-win for the

[[Page H7564]]

taxpayer. When we take a commonsense approach to our cost-savings
efforts, it is easy to see that the potential to save tens of millions
of dollars every year in increased productivity and lower overhead is
an excellent return on an initial investment of $28 million over 5
years.
Lastly, this past summer, our committee worked in a bipartisan
fashion with Mr. Issa and with the Senate on amending this bill. While
the bill before us looks somewhat different from what was previously
agreed to in the House, I would like to note that the Federal employees
who have been disciplined for being absent at work or for viewing,
downloading, or exchanging pornography on a government computer while
performing official duties will not be allowed to telework.
I urge my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to vote in favor of
H.R. 1722, the Telework Improvements Act. This legislation is aimed at
ensuring Federal agencies are able to operate 24/7, as the public
expects a 21st century employer to act, and to do so more cheaply. A
vote in favor of this bill is a vote for the future.
With that, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. ISSA. Madam Speaker, in the interest of fairness to one of our
Members who has been very engaged in this issue, I would like to yield
3 minutes to the gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Gingrey).
Mr. GINGREY of Georgia. Madam Speaker, I would like to thank my
colleague from California for yielding.
Since the stimulus passed in February of 2009, the private sector has
shed over 3.2 million jobs, and our national unemployment rate now
stands at a staggering 9.5 percent. With the rest of America struggling
to make ends meet, it is unconscionable that my Democratic colleagues
think that we should give yet another perk to Federal employees. By
requiring Federal agencies to duplicate an existing law, and allowing
them to spend a fourth of their time out of the office and on a mobile
work site, H.R. 1722 will cost the taxpayers another $30 million while
promoting an even more inefficient Federal workforce.
Madam Speaker, this is now the third time the House will consider
this legislation. When H.R. 1722 initially failed to pass under
suspension of the rules in May, the Democratic majority brought it up
again under a closed rule in July. It was only then that my Republican
colleagues and I had the opportunity to amend this bill through a
successful motion to recommit which made a number of improvements to
this legislation. However, as H.R. 1722 was considered in the Senate,
this motion to recommit was completely dismantled. A provision that
required an agency to certify to the Office of Personnel Management
that the agency's telework program will save money, rather than
increasing spending, was stripped from the bill.
Furthermore, Madam Speaker, a provision that would prohibit Federal
employees with seriously delinquent tax debts from teleworking was
removed. A third item required employees of the Executive Office of the
President to copy their official e-mail accounts on any business
communications that are made on personal e-mail and social media
accounts. This would ensure that Federal employees are actually working
instead of socializing on official time. Unfortunately, this
requirement is now gone. Finally, Madam Speaker, I am most disappointed
that the provision included in the House-passed version of H.R. 1722,
that would have prohibited Federal employees from engaging in union
recruiting or collective bargaining activities while teleworking on
official, taxpayer-funded time, has been removed by the Senate
Democrats. OPM reported that in fiscal year 2008 alone, nearly 3
million official time hours were used in collective bargaining or
arbitration of grievances against an employer. It equates to over $120
million of tax money spent on union activities, Madam Speaker. That's
irresponsible to use these dollars for nonrelated official duties while
on official time.
Madam Speaker, the motion to recommit was necessary to save precious
tax dollars and ensure the integrity of the Federal workforce. How will
we obtain the trust of the American people who are struggling every day
in this economy if we allow Federal employees to participate in union
activities while on official time, give them benefits when they're
delinquent on their taxes, and increase spending in Federal agencies
trying to make this flawed teleworking system work?
The SPEAKER pro tempore (Ms. DeGette). The time of the gentleman has
expired.
Mr. ISSA. I yield the gentleman 15 additional seconds.
Mr. GINGREY of Georgia. I thank the gentleman.
Madam Speaker, in conclusion, now is not the time to increase the
bureaucratic maze in Washington but to rein in the overlapping,
redundant policies that have made the Federal Government so large. We
must reduce spending and diligently work towards a more efficient and
more effective government that can live within its means. I urge my
colleagues to oppose the bill.
Mr. LYNCH. Madam Speaker, I yield 4 minutes to the gentleman from
Maryland, Representative John Sarbanes, the lead sponsor of this
measure.
Mr. SARBANES. Madam Speaker, I want to thank the gentleman for
yielding. I want to thank Chairman Towns, Chairman Lynch, Chairman
Davis, who I worked with previously on this bill, cosponsors Gerry
Connolly, Jim Moran, Dutch Ruppersberger, and others who have
collaborated with us on bringing this bill forward. I also want to take
a moment to salute Frank Wolf, our colleague on the other side of the
aisle. He has worked on this issue for two decades, and he has been a
tremendous advocate for telework, and I appreciate all of his support
and collaboration as we develop these ideas going forward.
I was listening to the end of that statement that was just made,
calling for efficiency and effectiveness in government, ways to address
the bureaucracy and so forth. I can't think of a piece of legislation
that does more to meet those objectives than this does. It creates a
nimbleness on the part of the Federal Government with respect to how
the workforce operates. And if you look at the goals that it seeks to
promote, they all make perfect sense. They are common sense. First of
all, the benefits include that you can improve productivity among the
workforce. All the studies show that morale goes up, productivity goes
up. The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, as it was referenced, can
demonstrate huge increases in productivity among the workforce. So that
is a benefit. It increases competitiveness. When the Federal Government
goes into the marketplace, goes into the workplace to try to recruit
good people, its ability to show that the telework opportunity is there
is something that makes it more competitive in getting the best quality
people to become part of our Federal Government.
When it comes to continuing operations in some kind of a crisis
situation, if you have the telework capacity, you've got some recourse.
The best evidence of this most recently was last year when we had the
snowstorm shut down the government essentially for 3 days. But during
those 3 days, those who had the ability to telework were able to
continue to operate. And the estimate by John Berry, heading the Office
of Personnel Management, was that it saved the Federal Government $30
million per day in terms of productivity that otherwise would have been
lost. And that just gets to the cost question. Again, we've heard this
objection based on the costs. The savings that will be generated when
our Federal agencies adopt these telework policies will far outweigh
any of the costs of implementing this program. So it's a very
commonsense approach.

{time} 1210

And what the bill does is very straightforward. It requires the
agencies to have a telework policy in place to encourage it, to promote
it, not to impose it on people who because of their particular job
shouldn't be teleworking or don't want to do this, but to make sure
that they have the opportunity to do it and to know that the agency
encourages that kind of thing.
It appoints telework managing officers so there's a person designated
within each agency who takes responsibility for this, so that they can
actually help to implement it over time.
It has good evaluation components. The GAO and the Office of
Personnel Management will conduct evaluations

[[Page H7565]]

on a periodic basis to determine the progress that this is making and
come up with suggestions and recommendations going forward.
And then it also encourages, as I indicated before, that these
agencies develop plans for continuing operations under difficult
circumstances, taking advantage of telework.
So, for all these reasons, for the benefits that it bestows, for the
objectives that it meets, for the commonsense aspect of it, I heartily
urge my colleagues to support this legislation.
Mr. ISSA. Madam Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from
Virginia (Mr. Wolf), one of the early innovators that really brought
telework to the Federal workforce.
(Mr. WOLF asked and was given permission to revise and extend his
remarks.)
Mr. WOLF. Madam Speaker, I would say, as the gentleman and I were
talking, I did support the motion to recommit and I thought there were
many, many good ideas in it. This bill, though, where we are today I
think is a good bill for the country.
As someone who has worked on this issue for more than 18 years, I
think it is good legislation. There is nothing magic about strapping
yourself into a metal box and driving 50 miles and sitting at a metal
desk, because that's not necessarily the way that we do things in the
21st century.
This bill saves money. It's important for Members to know that this
bill saves money. This bill reduces the footprint of the government.
This bill is deficit neutral and strengthens the continuation of
operations plan in the event of a disaster such as a hurricane, like
Katrina, or the massive snowstorm, as was previously mentioned, or in
the event of an earthquake such as the Loma Prieta, the 1989 World
Series earthquake, or in the event of a terrorist attack.
I was here on 9/11. The Pentagon was hit. Cell phones did not work.
Nothing worked. The government was fundamentally shut down. If we had
had more people teleworking, we would have had the continuity and have
been better able to function, particularly during that dark day of the
enemy attack.
During the February snowstorm, this bill saved money.
This legislation adopts many of the best management practices that
many companies, most companies now in the private sector are using.
Almost every major company in the private sector has telework. And when
you say you want the government to be more like the private sector,
this is the answer.
Lastly, Madam Speaker, every Member, or maybe almost every Member of
this institution teleworks when they pick up their BlackBerry or their
iPhone. To say that you have to be sitting at your desk office computer
to be doing your work is just not accurate. That's like saying every
Member is not working if they're not in their office sitting at their
laptop. That doesn't make any sense.
This brings the government into the 21st century, and I urge strong
support of this.
Madam Speaker, I appreciate the tireless efforts of the gentleman
from Maryland, Mr. Sarbanes, and was pleased to work with him to author
this legislation. I also thank the gentleman from New York, Mr. Towns,
and the gentleman from Massachusetts, Mr. Lynch, for their work to
advance this legislation, as well as our colleagues in the Senate who
worked on the text of what we are considering today, including Senators
Akaka, Voinovich, Lieberman, Collins, and Coburn.
This is good, bipartisan legislation, which was also strengthened in
the House through the work of my colleague from Virginia, Mr. Wittman,
and my colleague from West Virginia, Mrs. Capito.
My colleagues will detail why this legislation is important, that it
is deficit neutral, that it strengthens our COOP, Continuation of
Operations Plans, in the event of disasters such as a hurricane, like
Katrina, or a massive snowstorm, like what occurred this past February,
or in the event of an earthquake, such as the Loma Prieta, the World
Series earthquake, or in the event of a terrorist attack. In all these
instances, telework was vital in ensuring that our government continued
to operate.
In their song The Boxer, Simon and Garfunkel said that ``man hears
what he wants to hear and disregards the rest.'' That, unfortunately,
has been the case with this legislation.
Despite what you may hear, this is good legislation. Telework is good
government policy.
This legislation is about doing more with less. Let me repeat--
telework is about doing more with less. It is about adapting best
practice procedures from the private sector that companies, such as
IMB, use daily. It is about saving money. It is about reducing the
size, the footprint, of the Federal Government. It is about forcing the
Federal Government into the 21st century workplace.
During the February snowstorm, telework allowed the Federal
Government to recoup the $30 million a day for each day that the
government was shut down. Imagine how much would have been saved if
more people were teleworking?
It was through my work with members, such as the gentleman from
Maryland, Mr. Hoyer, that we forced the government to recognize the
benefits of telework. When I was chairman of the Science-State-Justice
and Commerce Appropriations Subcommittee, I inserted the language to
mandate that agencies increase telework opportunities for eligible
employees.
Why? Because agencies weren't following our directives, our intent.
The intent of the Congress to make the government more efficient. And
this is what is happening now--telework isn't being used to its fullest
extent. And maybe that's because of a lack of information, or reluctant
management, or a combination of both. This legislation will not fix all
the problems that exist. But it will go a long way toward improvement.
Work is something you do, not someplace you go. There is no magic to
strapping yourself in a metal box and driving, sometimes up to an hour
and a half to our workplaces, and sitting in front of our computers all
day.
Information accessed at workplaces can just as easily be accessed
from computers in our living rooms. With the American family under
attack, telework provides the opportunities for parents to spend more
time with their families, and everyone to enjoy things they like to do.
I urge a ``yes'' vote on the Telework Enhancement Act of 2010.
Mr. LYNCH. Madam Speaker, I thank the gentleman for his long time, 18
years, of leadership on this issue.
At this time, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from New York (Mr.
Towns), our distinguished chairman and a champion of this cause as well
for many years.
Mr. TOWNS. Madam Speaker, let me just say that I'm happy today to be
here. And of course Congresswoman Wolf just indicated that he's been
working on this for 18 years. And of course I think that the time is
right to move this legislation forward.
As chairman of the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, I
rise in strong support of H.R. 1722, the Telework Enhancement Act of
2010.
I want to congratulate Representative Sarbanes for his persistence
and his hard work on the legislation. I also want to commend
Representative Lynch, the chairman of the Federal Workforce Committee,
for his help in guiding this legislation through the process. I also
want to thank the ranking member on the Republican side, of course, for
his work as well.
H.R. 1722 will increase the Federal Government's use of telework.
This will make the Federal workforce more efficient and better prepared
to handle all emergencies. Telework saves the government money, reduces
energy consumption, and increases worker productivity.
This bill passed the House by an overwhelming margin on July 14,
2010. The Senate amended the bill and passed it by unanimous consent on
September 29, 2010. It is time for us to send this bill to the
President for his signature.
The Senate changes in H.R. 1722 represent a compromise between the
House-passed bill and Senate legislation introduced by Senator Akaka.
And of course I fully support this bipartisan compromise.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The time of the gentleman has expired.
Mr. LYNCH. I yield the gentleman an additional 30 seconds.
Mr. TOWNS. The Senate amendment includes key provisions from the
House bill, including language drafted by the ranking member of the
Oversight Committee, Representative Issa, and ranking member of the
Federal Workforce Subcommittee, Representative Chaffetz. This
discussion that led to the compromise we have before us today included
Members from both sides of the aisle and both sides of the Capitol.
This bill is the fruit of an inclusive and comprehensive process.
I strongly support this bipartisan, good government bill, and I urge
all of my colleagues to vote ``aye.''
Mr. ISSA. Madam Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from
Indiana

[[Page H7566]]

(Mr. Burton), the former chairman of the full committee.
Mr. BURTON of Indiana. Madam Speaker, I support this bill, but I
think there's something of an immediate import that needs to be
discussed, so I'm going to diverge just a little bit from the subject
matter.
Yesterday, Ahmed Ghailani, 36, who was involved in the killing of
Americans at the embassies in Tanzania and elsewhere in Kenya that
killed 224 people, including 12 Americans--the military tribunal down
at Guantanamo was prepared to try him, but the administration and our
Justice Department said he should be tried in civil court in New York
and there would be justice meted out. He was indicted on 286 counts for
murdering Americans and others at our embassies in those two countries,
and he was let off on all but one count. Two hundred eighty-five counts
were ruled out.
He killed Americans. He's a terrorist. He worked with Osama Bin
Laden. He bought dynamite. He bought the telephone that set off the
dynamite. He took the detonators to his house and stored them there. He
is a murderer. He is a terrorist.
Now, right now we have American men and women serving in our
embassies around the world, and this is the kind of message we're
sending, that terrorists can get away with killing Americans in our
embassies. It's unconscionable that this administration and the Justice
Department should let this happen.
If you look back in history, this kind of an incident would have been
tried in a military tribunal, and they wanted to do it. But our Justice
Department and our President said no, they would get justice in the
civil court. They got justice all right. But did we, the American
people?

{time} 1220

We've sent a message to terrorists around the world that, hey, you
can kill Americans, but you'll get off pretty light if you get into an
American courtroom. Isn't that tragic? It's tragic.
They're cutting off heads of people, they're blowing up embassies,
they're blowing up ships. They flew a plane into the World Trade Center
on 9/11. The mastermind behind that is down at Guantanamo. Are we going
to try him in a civil case in New York? That's what they want to do.
And if they do that, are we going to let him off? He was the mastermind
behind 9/11 that killed over 3,000 people.
I would just say, if I were talking to the President--and I wish I
could--I would say, ``Mr. President, this is a travesty of justice, and
your Justice Department should be instructed to try these people in
military tribunals.''
No more of this baloney. American lives are at stake and the security
of America is at stake.
Mr. LYNCH. Madam Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from
Virginia (Mr. Connolly) who has been at the forefront of this debate
and who has been a great advocate and champion on behalf of Federal
workers.
Mr. CONNOLLY of Virginia. Madam Speaker, I thank my colleague from
Massachusetts for his leadership, and particularly cite Congressman
Sarbanes for his leadership, and my Republican colleague from Virginia,
Frank Wolf, who laid out the merits of the case of the Telework
Improvements Act.
I have spent the last 10 years here in the national capital region
encouraging the public sector to follow the lead of the private sector
in promoting telework.
In my district, for example, AT&T, a private employer, one-third of
its workforce teleworks; not because it adds to corporate costs, but
because in fact it detracts from corporate costs; not because it takes
away efficiency, but in fact it improves productivity.
In the national capital region, there is almost no region in the
country that lends itself better to telework because of the nature of
the white-collar workforce than does this.
In the private sector, we are looking at close to 20 percent telework
rates, improving productivity, improving retention and recruitment,
improving the air quality of this region, and in fact contributing to
the bottom line.
Unfortunately, in the public sector, we fall behind. We are only at 6
or 7 percent in the Federal workforce, and that is the largest single
employer in the national capital region. And we are a nonattainment
region in terms of air quality. We can and we must do better.
Telework is an important and cost-effective component of efforts to
reduce congestion, greenhouse gas pollution, and smog. According to the
Telework Exchange, if 20 percent of Americans teleworked, we could
eliminate 67 million metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions annually,
and reduce Persian Gulf oil imports by 40 percent, something many of my
colleagues on the other side of the aisle I know are concerned about.
Reducing greenhouse gas emissions would lead to a reduction in
ground-level ozone in our region, which is critically important to
protect the health of our region's seniors and those with respiratory
ailments.
Today, as I said, 6 to 7 percent of eligible Federal employees
telework on a regular basis, even though the largely white collar
workforce in our region is so well suited for it.
When I was the chairman of Fairfax County, we started an aggressive
program to get to 20 percent of our eligible workforce teleworking by
2005. We met the goal, we exceeded the goal, we have sustained that
rate ever since. I am here to tell my colleagues that it improved our
efficiency, it saved taxpayer money, it improved productivity, and it
gave us a tool to recruit and retain the workforce of the future.
We must remember that with the baby boom generation ready to retire,
47 percent of the entire Federal workforce will be eligible to retire
this decade. We've got to have flexible tools that help us to replace
those skilled workers. Telework is a great way that costs us no money
that can make a big difference.
The Telework Improvements Act is an extraordinarily important piece
of legislation because it will help us meet critical policy goals:
savings of taxpayer money, improved federal efficiency, reduction of
dependence on foreign oil, and improvement in Continuity of Operations
Plans. I thank Congressman Sarbanes, Congressman Wolf, Office of
Personnel Management Director John Berry, and Subcommittee Chairman
Stephen Lynch for their leadership.
This legislation will save taxpayer money, and is PAYGO compliant. My
colleagues will recall that the federal government was shut down for a
week this winter due to snow. Regardless of whether future federal
closures are due to snow, other natural disasters, or a potential
terrorist attack, telework is an essential part of our Continuity of
Operations Plans that allow the federal government to stay open despite
disruptions to our transportation infrastructure. This February, the
federal government saved $30 million every day by achieving a 30
percent telework rate during the snow storm. Each additional percentage
point of telework achievement would have represented another million
dollars saved for taxpayers. Let us not forgo that savings for
taxpayers in the future.
Telework is an essential part of federal personnel policy because it
can help recruit and retain federal employees, maintain continuity of
operations in the event of an emergency, and reduce congestion and
related air pollution. With 48 percent of the federal workforce
eligible for retirement within the next 5 to 10 years, we must provide
benefits that attract highly qualified employees.
Telework is an important and cost-effective component of efforts to
reduce congestion, greenhouse gas pollution, and smog. According to the
Telework Exchange, if 20 percent of Americans teleworked, we could
eliminate 67 million metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions annually
and reduce Persian Gulf oil imports by 40 percent. Reducing greenhouse
gas emissions would lead to a reduction in ground level ozone in our
region, which is critically important to protect the health of our
region's seniors and other residents suffering from respiratory
ailments or asthma.
Today, less than 10 percent of eligible federal employees telework on
a regular basis, even though the largely white collar workforce in our
region is well suited for telework. By contrast, Fairfax County, the
largest suburb of the National Capital Region, has 20 percent of
eligible employees teleworking at least 1 day per week, and other
jurisdictions from this region are approaching that regional target.
The Telework Improvements Act provides a vehicle to increase telework
participation by designating a Telework Managing Officer from within
current staff for each agency and by integrating Continuity of
Operations Planning performance metrics. According to a recently
completed survey from the Office of Personnel Management, at least 64
percent of federal employees are eligible to telework, yet most are not
allowed to do so by their managers. The Telework Improvements Act will
help

[[Page H7567]]

change management culture to support telework.
I urge my colleagues to support the Telework Improvements Act, which
will improve the efficiency of the federal government, reduce our
dependence on foreign oil, and improve our national security.
Mr. ISSA. Madam Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from the
First District of Virginia (Mr. Wittman).
Mr. WITTMAN. Madam Speaker, I would like to thank the gentleman from
California for yielding. I would like to thank him, also, for his
leadership in this issue.
I rise today in support of the Senate amendment to H.R. 1722, the
Telework Improvement Act.
This legislation will foster the use of telework by Federal agencies
by ensuring that each agency has a telework policy, and that employees
are informed about their eligibility to telework. This bill would
ensure that those Federal employees who are eligible to telework are
able to do so, with an emphasis on enhancing agency operations and
productivity.
Virginia's First District is home to thousands of Federal employees,
many of whom commute hours each day. Despite the fact that there are
such numerous benefits to teleworking, such as reduced traffic
congestion and energy consumption, cost savings, competitive hiring and
retention, readiness and emergency preparedness, many Federal agencies
continue to underutilize telework.
The snowstorm last winter, as we have heard referred to today, which
closed the Federal Government several days is a good example of how
teleworking programs can achieve cost savings. We saw during that time
that 30 percent of our Federal workers actually teleworked during that
snowstorm, achieving $30 million daily in reduced costs for that
Federal workforce being offsite. As Representative Wolf so stated
there, that, I think, is a great example of the potential savings that
can be achieved through teleworking.
Under this legislation, Federal employees handling classified
information, though, would not be eligible to telework. This policy
effectively prevents the use of teleworking programs by employees who
need access to classified information specifically in the areas of
defense, homeland security, law enforcement, and intelligence.
The Director of the National Intelligence Agency's Vision 2015 states
that there is a definite need for cross-organizational collaboration,
cross-functional teams, and joint duty amongst the intelligence
agencies, and this is going to require a much more agile
infrastructure.
Vision 2015, as it is identified, suggests that the intelligence
community will have to shift from the current centralized model, where
employees are consolidated in a single location, to a model where a
dispersed workforce can rapidly come together in a virtual environment
to respond to new tasks and missions. This workforce is going to have
to be flexible and is going to have to be spread out so that
strategically we can meet whatever challenges this Nation may face in
the future.
I look forward to working with my colleagues to further explore the
potential of secure teleworking. Robust teleworking programs at Federal
agencies will get cars off congested roads, enhance productivity,
reduce costs, and ensure continuity of operations.
I urge my colleagues to support this bill.
Mr. LYNCH. Madam Speaker, I appreciate the gentleman from Virginia's
remarks.
At this time, I would yield 2 minutes to the gentlelady from the
District of Columbia, Ms. Eleanor Holmes Norton.
Ms. NORTON. I want to thank Chairman Lynch and Mr. Sarbanes for this
important bill which takes telework from policy to practice. What
progress we have made in telework we owe largely to members of this
region, but especially to Mr. Wolf.
The Telework Enhancement Act takes telework all the way from a piece
of policy lying on paper to be picked up at will, or not picked up, to
a real practice with savings in productivity flowing directly to the
Federal Government. The bill converts telework from a passive to an
affirmative policy of the Federal Government, along with all the
productivity and savings that have been documented to occur. It
essentially makes going to work by telework the functional equivalent
of getting on the road or getting on a crowded Metro car.
Although this bill will be implemented nationwide, the two snowstorms
in this region should have shocked private and public entities alike
into telework. Admittedly, though, those are exceptional
circumstances--9/11, natural disasters, continuity of operations--all
are important, but they are far from the only reasons for this bill.
Government has spent billions of dollars in state-of-the-art
technology. This technology is underutilized as long as telework itself
is underutilized. Nothing is more inefficient for employees and the
government alike than compelling an employee to fight some of the worst
traffic congestion in the Nation to get to a Federal office. Nothing is
more costly to the government than requiring every employee lockstep to
come to a physical place and do the work that could be accomplished
with increased productivity and output at home. Nothing is of greater
benefit to the oil cartels and to the trade deficit than forcing people
on the road. Nothing is more disruptive to two-parent and single-parent
families alike than time spent from home, sometimes an hour or two each
day in this region, which can now be converted to family life and more
work accomplished right there at home.

{time} 1230

This bill had a bipartisan vote in committee because there was no
addition to the deficit, because management, training limits on who can
qualify, and emergency measures are all in place. Going to the office
to do a job that can be done in less time, more output, greater savings
to the government is so 20th century. This is not 1950. It's time our
government came into the 21st century to have in place a set of
alternatives that provide employees a better way to get the same job
done.
Mr. ISSA. Madam Speaker, could I inquire how much time each side has
remaining?
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The gentleman from California has 18\1/2\
minutes remaining. The gentleman from Massachusetts has 11 minutes
remaining.
Mr. ISSA. Could I further inquire as to how many additional speakers
the majority has?
Mr. LYNCH. I have one additional speaker.
Mr. ISSA. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Madam Speaker, this is a bill, an underlying bill, an underlying
concept that not only do I endorse and appreciate, but I knew and
worked with extensively in the private sector. There's no question in
the private sector telecommuting continues to grow. But there are a
couple of things I would like to straighten up out here today in
consideration of this bill.
First of all, Madam Speaker, every Member of Congress has a
Blackberry. So do most major members of the Federal workforce. Many of
us have portable devices like this iPad. The fact is there is no
shortage of telecommuting tools presently at use in the Federal
workforce. We are not talking about the ability to telecommute. We are
talking about a new bureaucratic mandate within the Federal regime that
requires each agency have a specific entity for that purpose, and we
are doing so without the safeguards that my motion to recommit offered
and overwhelmingly was accepted before the election.
When I say before the election, I think it's also important to note,
this will be the first vote after the American people said ``no'' to
government waste, fraud, and abuse; government growth, government
spending. And yet the Senate, before the election, stripped out of this
bill something as innocuous as each agency having to show that
telecommuting additions were going to be net cost savings. In other
words, with all the bravado about how this wasn't going to cost but it
was going to save, what was stripped out of this was any kind of
assertion, not an assertion that required an audit, but just an
assertion by the agency head that their efforts were going to save
money.
I was here for the snowstorm of last year, and I just want the
American people who may not have been able to

[[Page H7568]]

be here in Washington, D.C., to understand that it was quite a
snowstorm. And I appreciate the estimate of $30 million a day of
savings. But I might also remind the American people that every
restaurant was open and doing great business and the parks were filled
with people having snowball fights. In fact, what really happened was
the Federal workforce got a paid holiday while people who had to figure
out how to make a buck found a way to get their people to work so they
could still sell to those Federal workers who were having a holiday.
It is, in fact, more common for the Federal workforce to say, go
ahead, stay at home. That probably begs the question of telecommuting.
But then the question is where in this bill do we require people who
are telecommuting not to get a day off because it snows since they are
in their home where the snow shouldn't be affecting them?
We have a lot of safeguards not in the bill. I'm convinced today with
the current majority that this bill will probably pass as it is. I
intend to bring back in the next Congress additional reforms and hold
oversight as appropriate to make sure that we improve that which is not
being dealt with today. I expect I will have the same bipartisan
support that we had throughout this process in the House. I am mostly
disappointed that with an overwhelming, over 303 votes here in the
House for the bill as it was, that it came back to us without things
that we thought should be in it.
Madam Speaker, I don't want to be a partisan. But I do believe it's
important that we consider that one of the items that was in this bill
when it left the House was a prohibition on basically union work
outside of the cover of office. We have collective bargaining
agreements almost universally within the Federal Government. We also
have regulations about these people whether they have to do other work
or not. This bill lacks the safeguard so that somebody can basically
take a Blackberry and a notebook, disappear forever and be almost
unaccountable as to whether they ever did any of their core work while
doing their union organizing and running activity. That's not in the
best interest of the taxpayers. It's not what the last election was
about. It's not what I had hoped to see.
I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. LYNCH. Madam Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the former chairman of
the Federal Workforce Subcommittee, Mr. Danny Davis of Illinois.
Mr. DAVIS of Illinois. Madam Speaker, I want to first of all thank
Chairman Lynch for yielding time. I also want to commend Mr. Sarbanes
for the continuous work that he has done to bring this legislation
before us today. I also want to commend Mr. Wolf because for a long
time he has been the champion of this legislation, and all of us
appreciate his work.
I'm pleased to be a cosponsor of this bill which provides
opportunities to do a number of things. First of all, it saves money.
All of us have talked about saving, trying to make sure that we are as
efficient and as effective as a Federal Government, as any workforce,
as we can possibly be. I don't think that there is any doubt in
anyone's mind that we can save money.
It also provides an opportunity to deal with another issue, and
that's the issue of the environment. How do we reduce the smog
emissions? How do we help clean up and clear up the environment? Well
if you could imagine, reducing not only in the Washington, D.C., area,
but in other large metropolitan areas, the large number of vehicles
that we have moving to and from, and especially in instances where we
know the work can be done. And I think the U.S. Patent Office has
proven without a doubt that you can, in fact, be effective, you can be
efficient, you can do a good job, and you can get the job done.
So I commend all of those who are in support of this legislation.
Again, I want to thank Chairman Lynch for giving me time to
participate.
Mr. ISSA. I yield myself the balance of my time.
Madam Speaker, I have said most of what has to be said, and I'm not
going to use all of the time that the minority has. This bill, as I
said, will probably pass, and it will be a shame. I would hope that all
Republicans and Democrats who know this could be better and voted for
it when it was better would also vote against it, not because the
outcome is certain, but because we have an opportunity to say we're not
going to produce a new bureaucracy without some reservation when we
know it could have been better.
This is not a bill that creates the opportunity for telework. Every
agency that sees this bill will look and say, darn, I've got to create
a special entity that is a telework czar entity. They will know that
for what it is. What it doesn't do is it doesn't give them the kind of
additional new guidelines that really would keep this from being, in
some cases, just a mandate for a perk, and in other cases a mandate for
an agency creation within an agency.
I think that's the most dangerous part of what we do. We should
never, never give the Federal Government a requirement to do something
and not give them the guidance, authority, and statute necessary to
make sure they do it right. We have that responsibility. The executive
branch is, in fact, the administrative branch. For them to administer,
we either need to give them the rules or require that they create rules
that are sensible and then create oversight for it.
That's not what this bill does today. As I said, in no case will this
create one new telework job. It simply will create a new bureaucracy,
and it does so without any of the protections the motion to recommit,
widely accepted by the House, brought before the elections.

{time} 1240

Additionally, creating efficiency in government is now essential.
When we reconvene in January, our problem will be $1.4 trillion worth
of spending--spending greater than what the American people are willing
to pay or are able to pay to fund our government. That means to us that
we're going to have to find a way to have less Federal workers, Federal
workers that cost less, Federal workers that need less facilities. So I
will continue to support telework if it means that we're not building
new Federal buildings, we're not causing the infrastructure to grow; in
other words, Madam Speaker, that we're saving money.
I'm sad to say that this bill, when it is signed by the President,
will do none of that. But the President knows, the Director of the
Office of Management and Budget knows, the Vice President knows, the
House knows, and certainly the Senate knows that we have a long way to
go when we talk about private sector telecommuting to be as efficient
as the private sector. We are not. What we do is in fact we use the
word ``telecommute'' often to say, Well, look, we're using the gadgets.
We must be doing better.
Madam Speaker, we can do better. We should do better. I understand
this is an important vote to many people who feel that the Federal
workforce needs a perk, a symbol that we're going to do something for
them. Madam Speaker, this is not doing something for the Federal
workforce unless the American people have confidence that the Federal
workforce is becoming leaner, more efficient, more effective in doing
what the people want done for them. In that case, Madam Speaker, I will
recommend that all of my side and as many of those that will listen on
the other side of the aisle vote ``no'' today as a symbol that in fact
we can do better.
The guidance from the Congress should be to increase efficiency and
to describe that in a way in which the Federal workforce can have
confidence that we're on the same team, we're on the same side. We want
them to avoid excessive commuting. We want this to be more efficient
and effective. But we also want to be a Congress that provides such
guidelines as necessary rather than simply a mandate for a new
bureaucracy in every agency that is now going to be the telecommuting
agency.
With that, Madam Speaker, I thank my colleagues on both sides of the
aisle because we did work long and hard to try to get a better bill. We
sent the Senate a better bill. We now, today, can only consider what
has been brought before us.
I recommend a ``no'' vote and yield back the balance of my time.
Mr. LYNCH. At this time I just want to thank Mr. Wolf and Mr.
Wittman, my colleagues across the other side of the aisle who stood and
spoke in favor of this bill. Despite the highlight of our

[[Page H7569]]

differences, I would like to remind our colleagues that this bill was
entirely acceptable to all of the Democratic and Republicans on the
Oversight Committee prior to this bill reaching the floor.
H.R. 1722 received full consideration by the Federal Workforce
Subcommittee that I chair. It was referred unanimously by the
subcommittee to the full Oversight Committee. And during the full
committee consideration, I am proud to say that Republican amendments
were offered and they were accepted and the legislation was then
advanced to the House without a single objection by any Republican
member. And I am proud of that fact. That is bipartisanship. My friends
on the other side of the aisle, good Republicans, had every opportunity
to attempt to add additional provisions in the committee, where they
would have received full consideration rather than the 5 minutes of
hurried debate prior to the vote on the Republican motion to recommit.
But today I'm pleased that we have the opportunity to consider the
excellent, comprehensive, bipartisan compromise we were able to
negotiate with the Senate. And I would also like to add that all the
House and Senate committee staff, majority and minority, met following
Senate passage to discuss possible alternatives that would be
acceptable.
This has been a bipartisan process. This is something I think we can
agree on. I would not want the perfect to be the enemy of the good in
this case. I think we have a good bill here. I think there's been good
input from both sides of the aisle here, and it shows in the end
product.
Mr. VAN HOLLEN. Madam Speaker, as a representative of a district with
a large number of Federal employees, I rise in strong support of H.R.
1722, The Telework Improvements Act. I want to thank Chairmen Towns and
Lynch and Representative Sarbanes for their leadership in crafting this
important bipartisan bill.
The Telework Improvements Act makes administrative, fiscal and
environmental sense. If passed, the measure will save money for the
American taxpayers, make government operations more efficient, and put
the Federal Government on equal footing with many private sector
employers and State governments which allow their employees to perform
many of their duties and responsibilities from home or at another work
site.
Passing this bill will help attract more workers to government
service. There is an effort under way to encourage more young people to
work for the Federal Government to offset the growing number of older
employees who are retiring. Offering prospective employees the option
to telework increases the possibility that those employees with
families will join the Federal workforce.
Passing this bill is smart fiscal policy. According to the Office of
Personnel Management, during the blizzard that hit Washington, DC last
winter, the government lost tens of millions of dollars worth of
productivity for each day it remained closed. This number might have
been far larger had some Federal workers not had the opportunity to
work from home. The bill will also reduce costs for taxpayers by
lowering absenteeism.
Passing this bill makes environmental sense. Increasing teleworking
opportunities for employees of the country's largest employer means
fewer cars on the roads and lower carbon emissions. According to the
Telework Exchange, if 20 percent of Americans teleworked, we could
eliminate 67 million metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions annually
and reduce Persian Gulf oil imports by 40 percent.
Madam Speaker, passing The Telework Improvements Act will save money
for the taxpayer, help ease pressure on the environment and make the
government run more efficiently. The bill is also PAYGO compliant.
I encourage my colleagues to join me in supporting the bill and I
urge its immediate passage.
Mr. LYNCH. I ask all Members to vote in favor of H.R. 1722, and I
yield back the balance of my time.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. All time for debate has expired.
Pursuant to clause 1(c) of rule XIX, further consideration of this
motion is postponed.

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