SHOW UP Act of 2025
- Bill Number
- H.R. 473
- Origin Chamber
- House
- Congress
- 119th Congress, Session 1
- Policy Area
- Government Operations and Politics
- Status
- Introduced
- Latest Action
- 2025-01-16: Referred to the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform.
- Last Updated
- 2025-07-21T15:48:21Z
AI-Generated Summary
Purpose
The SHOW UP Act of 2025 aims to reverse the expansion of telework (remote or flexible work from home or other locations) in federal executive agencies that occurred during the COVID-19 pandemic. It requires agencies to return to pre-pandemic in-person work levels unless they can demonstrate through a certified plan that expanded telework improves agency performance, reduces costs, and supports secure operations.
Key Provisions
- Immediate Reversion to Pre-Pandemic Standards: Within 30 days of enactment, each federal executive agency (excluding the Government Accountability Office) must adopt telework policies, practices, and participation levels no greater than those in place on December 31, 2019. Agencies cannot expand these until submitting a plan certified by the Director of the Office of Personnel Management (OPM).
- Required Study and Plan Submission: Within 6 months of enactment, each agency head, in consultation with the OPM Director, must submit to Congress:
- A study analyzing the effects of pandemic-era telework expansion, including:
- Negative impacts on agency mission performance and customer service.
- Costs from underutilized office space or incorrect locality pay (extra pay based on an employee's work location, which may be misapplied to remote workers).
- Failures to provide secure tools, data access, and equipment for productive remote work.
- How telework spread the workforce geographically across the U.S.
- Other relevant effects.
- A proposed plan to expand telework beyond pre-2020 levels.
- Certification Requirement: The OPM Director must certify that any expansion plan will:
- Positively boost mission performance (including customer service), increase workforce dispersal nationwide, and address any negative dispersal effects.
- Significantly cut costs for office space and locality pay for employees working outside their official duty station.
- Ensure remote workers get secure networks, tools, data access, and equipment without raising overall agency costs.
- Implementation Limits: Agencies cannot enact an expansion plan without OPM certification. If the initial plan fails certification, agencies may submit revised plans until approved, then report the certified plan to Congress.
- Definitions: "Agency" refers to executive branch entities; "telework" includes remote work; "locality pay" is location-based salary adjustments under federal law.
Significant Changes to Existing Law
This bill introduces new mandates not previously required under federal telework laws (e.g., the Telework Enhancement Act of 2010, which encouraged but did not strictly limit telework). It rolls back post-2020 flexibilities granted during the pandemic, imposes a certification process for future expansions, and requires detailed studies on telework's costs and impacts—shifting from optional agency discretion to enforced pre-pandemic baselines with strict approval hurdles.
Potential Impacts
- On Government Agencies: Agencies may face operational disruptions from mandating more in-office work, including higher office utilization and potential hiring challenges in dispersed locations. However, certified expansions could lower real estate and pay costs while improving mission efficiency if secure remote tools are provided.
- On Citizens: Improved customer service and mission performance could enhance public access to federal services (e.g., faster processing at agencies like the IRS or Social Security Administration). Taxpayers might benefit from reduced costs for underused federal buildings.
- On International Relations: No direct impacts mentioned, though agencies involved in foreign affairs (e.g., State Department) could see minor effects on in-person collaboration if telework is curtailed.
Main Stakeholders Affected
- Federal Employees: Reduced telework options could limit work-life balance and geographic flexibility, potentially affecting recruitment and retention, especially for those in high-cost areas.
- Federal Agencies and OPM: Agency leaders must conduct studies and develop plans; OPM gains oversight authority to certify expansions, increasing its role in workforce policy.
- Congress: Receives reports and studies, enabling oversight of agency telework decisions.
- Taxpayers and the Public: Indirectly affected through agency efficiency, cost savings on federal real estate (a major budget item), and service quality.
Notable Legal, Constitutional, or Political Implications
- Legal: The bill could invite challenges under federal labor laws or collective bargaining agreements, as it limits employee telework rights without direct negotiation. It relies on OPM's authority under Title 5 of the U.S. Code but adds new certification requirements that might be contested if seen as overly restrictive.
- Constitutional: No direct conflicts, but it touches on due process for federal workers by altering employment conditions; equal protection concerns could arise if expansions unevenly affect certain employee groups (e.g., those with disabilities benefiting from telework).
- Political: As a bipartisan but Republican-led initiative (introduced by Rep. Comer and others), it signals a pushback against pandemic-era remote work trends, potentially fueling debates on federal efficiency versus employee flexibility. It may set precedents for future workforce mandates in a post-pandemic era, influencing budget and oversight priorities.
This summary was generated by AI and may contain inaccuracies. Refer to the official source document for the authoritative text.
Sponsor
Cosponsors (23)
Rep. Higgins, Clay [R-LA-3], Rep. Timmons, William R. [R-SC-4], Rep. Biggs, Andy [R-AZ-5], Rep. Cloud, Michael [R-TX-27], Rep. Foxx, Virginia [R-NC-5], Rep. Langworthy, Nicholas A. [R-NY-23], Rep. Crane, Elijah [R-AZ-2], Rep. Palmer, Gary J. [R-AL-6], Rep. McGuire, John [R-VA-5], Rep. Grothman, Glenn [R-WI-6], Rep. Fallon, Pat [R-TX-4], Rep. Burlison, Eric [R-MO-7], Rep. Sessions, Pete [R-TX-17], Rep. Jack, Brian [R-GA-3], Rep. Burchett, Tim [R-TN-2], Rep. Boebert, Lauren [R-CO-4], Rep. Perry, Scott [R-PA-10], Rep. Greene, Marjorie Taylor [R-GA-14], Rep. Donalds, Byron [R-FL-19], Rep. Fry, Russell [R-SC-7], Rep. Moolenaar, John R. [R-MI-2], Rep. Edwards, Chuck [R-NC-11], Rep. Ellzey, Jake [R-TX-6]
Recent Actions
- 2025-01-16: Referred to the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform.
- 2025-01-16: Introduced in House
- 2025-01-16: Introduced in House
Bill Versions
- Stopping Home Office Work’s Unproductive Problems Act of 2025 — issued 2025-01-16 — PDF (6 pages)