[Congressional Record Volume 172, Number 106 (Wednesday, June 24, 2026)]
[Senate]
[Page S3373]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
SA 6189. Mr. WARNER submitted an amendment intended to be proposed by
him to the bill S. 4784, to authorize appropriations for fiscal year
2027 for military activities of the Department of Defense, for military
construction, and for defense activities of the Department of Energy,
to prescribe military personnel strengths for such fiscal year, and for
other purposes; which was ordered to lie on the table; as follows:
At the appropriate place, insert the following:
SEC. ___. FLEXIBLE WORK ARRANGEMENTS FOR CERTAIN FEDERAL
EMPLOYEES.
(a) Flexible and Compressed Work Schedules.--
(1) In general.--Subchapter II of chapter 61 of title 5,
United States Code, is amended--
(A) in section 6122--
(i) in the section heading, by striking ``agencies
authorized to use'' and inserting ``agency usage'';
(ii) by amending subsection (a) to read as follows:
``(a)(1) Notwithstanding section 6101 of this title, each
agency--
``(A) may establish, in accordance with this subchapter,
programs that allow the use of flexible schedules that
include--
``(i) designated hours and days during which an employee on
such a schedule must be present for work; and
``(ii) designated hours during which an employee on such a
schedule may elect the time of such employee's arrival at and
departure from work, solely for such purpose or, if and to
the extent permitted, for the purpose of accumulating credit
hours to reduce the length of the workweek or another
workday; and
``(B) shall establish programs described in subparagraph
(A) that allow the use of a flexible schedule, as described
in that subparagraph, by a covered employee, the spouse of
whom is deployed.
``(2) An election by an employee referred to in paragraph
(1)(A)(ii), and the participation by a covered employee in a
program established under paragraph (1)(B), shall be subject
to limitations generally prescribed to ensure that the duties
and requirements of the position of the applicable employee
are fulfilled.''; and
(iii) by adding at the end the following:
``(c) In this section--
``(1) the term `covered employee' means an employee, the
spouse of whom is a member of the uniformed services; and
``(2) the term `deployed'--
``(A) with respect to a member of the armed forces, means
that the member is deployed or in a deployment within the
meaning of section 991(b) of title 10, including any
definition of `deployment' prescribed under paragraph (4) of
that section; and
``(B) with respect to a member of the commissioned corps of
the Public Health Service or the National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration, has the meaning given the term by
the Secretary concerned, as defined in section 101 of title
37.'';
(B) in section 6130(a), by adding at the end the following:
``(3) Notwithstanding any other provision of this
subsection, no collective bargaining agreement may fail to
provide for the use of a flexible or compressed work schedule
that is required to be allowed section 6122(a)(1)(B).'';
(C) in section 6131(d), by inserting ``or that are required
to be allowed under section 6122(a)(1)(B)'' after ``under
this subchapter''; and
(D) in section 6133(b), by adding at the end the following:
``(3) The materials, aids, and assistance under paragraph
(1) shall include information that an agency shall provide to
covered employees, as defined in subsection (c) of section
6122, regarding the rights of those covered employees under
subsection (a)(1)(B) of that section.''.
(2) Technical and conforming amendment.--The table of
sections for subchapter II of chapter 61 of title 5, United
States Code, is amended by striking the item relating to
section 6122 and inserting the following:
``6122. Flexible schedules; agency usage.''.
(b) Telework.--Chapter 65 of title 5, United States Code,
is amended--
(1) in section 6502(b)--
(A) in paragraph (5), by striking ``and'' at the end;
(B) in paragraph (6), by striking the period at the end and
inserting ``; and''; and
(C) by adding at the end the following:
``(7) allow an employee, the spouse of whom is a member of
the uniformed services, to telework while that spouse is
deployed, as defined in section 6122(c).''; and
(2) in section 6505(b)--
(A) in paragraph (2)(C), by striking ``and'' at the end;
(B) by redesignating paragraph (3) as paragraph (4); and
(C) by inserting after paragraph (2)(C) the following:
``(3) provide information to employees, the spouses of whom
are members of the uniformed services, regarding the rights
of those employees under section 6502(b)(7).''.
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