Overview
Title
To restore in-person work at Federal agencies to not less than pre-pandemic levels, and for other purposes.
ELI5 AI
The SHOW UP Act of 2025 is a plan that says people who work for the government should go back to working in their offices just like before the pandemic unless there's a special plan approved to let them work from home more. It also wants to check if working from home during the pandemic was helpful for getting work done.
Summary AI
H.R. 473, known as the "Stopping Home Office Work’s Unproductive Problems Act of 2025" or "SHOW UP Act of 2025," requires federal agencies to return to the in-person work levels that existed before the COVID-19 pandemic. Within 30 days of the law's enactment, agencies must follow telework levels from December 31, 2019, unless they submit a plan to Congress, with certified approval from the Director of the Office of Personnel Management, supporting expanded telework. The bill also mandates agencies to conduct a study on the effects of increased telework during the pandemic, evaluating impacts on agency missions, cost implications, and the provision of adequate telework infrastructure.
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AnalysisAI
The bill, known as the "Stopping Home Office Work’s Unproductive Problems Act of 2025" or the "SHOW UP Act of 2025," aims to reinstate pre-pandemic levels of in-person work at federal agencies and outlines specific measures for evaluating and potentially expanding telework policies.
General Summary of the Bill
The proposed legislation mandates that all federal agencies must revert to telework policies, practices, and levels that were in effect as of December 31, 2019, within 30 days of the bill’s enactment. However, agencies are permitted to expand these levels but only after submitting a detailed plan to Congress, which must be certified by the Director of the Office of Personnel Management. This plan must demonstrate a positive impact on the agency's mission, cost savings, and secure telework infrastructure without increasing expenses. The bill aims to address the various impacts of telework expansions initiated during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Summary of Significant Issues
One of the primary issues highlighted in the bill is the potential for reverting to outdated work practices by mandating a return to pre-pandemic telework levels without consideration for efficiencies gained during the pandemic. The requirement for agency plans to be certified is another concern, as the bill lacks clarity regarding the criteria for this certification, leading to potential ambiguity. Furthermore, there is an assumption that all agencies can achieve cost reductions through telework expansion, which may not be realistic given each agency's unique needs and missions. Additionally, the complexity and administrative burden of preparing and submitting these plans might lead to inefficient resource allocation.
Impact on the Public
On a broad scale, this legislation may affect how quickly and efficiently federal services are delivered to the public. By mandating pre-pandemic in-person work levels without considering potential benefits of remote work, agency performance could be hindered if forced to abandon efficiencies realized during the pandemic. Public interaction with federal services might see changes in accessibility and responsiveness if agencies struggle to balance between telework policies and maintaining service standards.
Impact on Stakeholders
Federal employees and agencies are the primary stakeholders significantly impacted by this bill. Employees may face disruptions if forced back to pre-pandemic work arrangements, potentially affecting work-life balance and productivity. The bill’s inflexibility might not account for individual agency successes with telework, leading to morale and satisfaction issues among the workforce. Conversely, for agencies managing real property and operational costs, there may be some pressure to realize cost efficiencies and ensure productive use of federal resources.
In conclusion, this legislation seeks to reestablish in-person work levels in federal agencies to pre-pandemic times. While there could be benefits in terms of standardized work policies across agencies, the rigid nature of the bill might overlook potential improvements telework has brought about. These impacts, combined with a lack of clarity in certification requirements, could lead to varied outcomes for public service delivery and federal personnel welfare.
Issues
The mandate to revert to pre-pandemic telework policies under Section 2 could lead to ineffective work practices by ignoring improvements and efficiencies realized during the pandemic, potentially affecting employee welfare and productivity across Federal agencies.
Section 3 requires a certification from the Director for an agency's telework plan but lacks clarity on the standards or criteria for certification, leading to potential ambiguity and inconsistent implementation across agencies.
The bill under Section 3 assumes all agencies can achieve cost reductions through telework, which might not be realistic given the diverse needs and missions of different agencies, potentially leading to negative impacts on operations.
The bill in Section 2 does not consider the benefits of telework such as improved work-life balance, which could impact employee satisfaction and productivity if reverted to pre-pandemic levels.
The potential increase in administrative burden as agencies must prepare plans for certification to Congress under Section 2 and Section 3 might lead to inefficient resource allocation.
There is potential concern about wasteful spending on real property if agencies maintain ownership or leases of underutilized space due to expanded telework, and the bill does not provide clear measures to address this in Section 3.
The name 'Stopping Home Office Work's Unproductive Problems Act of 2025' in Section 1 could be seen as unclear, possibly leading to misinterpretations about the bill's intentions and contents.
The complexity of language in Section 3 regarding the balance of workforce dispersal and cost savings might lead to difficulties in interpretation and implementation by different entities.
Sections
Sections are presented as they are annotated in the original legislative text. Any missing headers, numbers, or non-consecutive order is due to the original text.
1. Short title Read Opens in new tab
Summary AI
This Act is officially called the "Stopping Home Office Work’s Unproductive Problems Act of 2025" or "SHOW UP Act of 2025".
2. Reinstatement of pre-pandemic telework policies, practices, and levels for Executive agencies Read Opens in new tab
Summary AI
Under the new law, all government agencies have 30 days to implement telework policies that match the levels they had at the end of 2019, without any expansion, until they send a specific plan to Congress for approval.
3. Study, plan, and certification regarding Executive agency telework policies, practices, and levels for Executive agencies Read Opens in new tab
Summary AI
The section requires each federal agency, with help from the Director of the Office of Personnel Management, to conduct a study on the effects of increased telework during the COVID-19 pandemic and plan for future telework expansion. The plan must be certified by the Director to ensure it improves agency performance, spreads employees across the country, reduces real estate and pay costs, and provides necessary tools for teleworkers without raising overall network expenses. If the plan isn't certified, the agency can submit revised plans until it receives approval.