Will Teleworking Legislation Put Pressure on Property Inventory?

Newly proposed government teleworking legislation might improve the work-life balance of many federal employees – but it may also expose federal real property inventory to being considered as surplus.

In an April 2 article in GovExec.com, reporter Daniel Pulliam explained the bill (originally introduced in late March, and subsequently labeled S.1000, The Telework Enhancement Act of 2007).

According to Pulliam, S.1000 was introduced by Senator Ted Stevens (R-AK) and Mary Landrieu (D-LA). The bill is intended to reverse a law that had made federal employees ineligible to telework.

Under the pending legislation, Pulliam reported, teleworking would be refused to federal employees only if agencies could “show that an employee's job is inappropriate for work away from the office.” The practice “would not apply to employees whose jobs involve sensitive materials, national security or physical contact with equipment.”

In a joint press statement, Stevens and Landrieu explained the benefits of the legislation as enhancing efficiency reduce traffic congestion and improve the lives of federal employees by allowing them to work from home on a full- or part-time basis. Telework as defined by S.1000 is an employment situation in which employees’ work is conducted regularly at an alternative site at least two business days per week, to reduce their commuting time.

Pulliam quoted Landrieu as saying, "This legislation will help American families by giving federal workers the opportunity to continue serving the nation while spending more quality time with their loved ones," Landrieu said. "It is a commonsense proposal, and I will work closely with my colleagues to secure its quick passage."

Such planned fast-tracking of the S.1000 proposal means that real property professionals must start now to prepare whatever documentation may be required to justify maintaining their current inventory – or to explain how teleworking will lead to right-sizing the inventory.

An explanation of the potential impacts of S.1000 was provided by VISTA legislative affairs liaison, Kimberly Price. Price described the potential for having real property deemed surplus under teleworking by using the “theory of simple thirds.” For example, she explained, “assume that one-third of real property may not lend itself to telework, because of security or special purpose considerations. That means that, in some circles, the remaining two-thirds of the inventory will have to be reviewed carefully to determine whether a large portion is it can declared as surplus.”

Acknowledging that it is unlikely that some overwhelming portion of the inventory will become surplus if teleworking is widely accepted, Price nonetheless noted that the current budgetary environment could prompt federal financial professionals and legislators to examine the real property ramifications of teleworking. Such misconceptions make it more important than ever for real property professionals to have the best data possible to in the management of their real property portfolio.

For Daniel Pulliam’s GovExec.com article on S.1000, visit http://www.govexec.com/dailyfed/0307/040207p1.htm.