The SHOW UP Act of 2025 would require executive federal agencies to study the effects of the COVID-19-era expansion of telework, reinstate the telework policies and levels that were in place on December 31, 2019, and bar any expansion of telework until an agency submits a plan and receives a certification from the Director of the Office of Personnel Management (OPM). Specifically, agencies must (within 30 days) revert to pre-pandemic telework policies and then, within 180 days, produce a congressionally-delivered study on the impacts of telework during COVID-19, a plan to expand telework beyond 2019 levels, and a Director-certified assurance that the plan would improve mission performance, disperse the workforce, and reduce costs related to real property and locality pay while maintaining secure IT and data access. If a plan isn’t certified, agencies may revise and resubmit until certification is granted and then submitted to Congress. In short, the bill would slow or halt telework expansion, require formal study and justification for any expanded telework, and demand explicit cost and security assurances before new telework policies could be adopted.
Key Points
- 1Reinstatement requirement: Within 30 days of enactment, agency heads must revert to the telework policies, practices, and levels that were in effect on December 31, 2019; no expansions are allowed until Congress receives an agency plan and a Director’s certification.
- 2Study requirement: Within 180 days, each agency must submit to Congress a study on the impacts of COVID-era telework expansion, including effects on mission performance, customer service, costs tied to real estate and locality pay, security and access to data/tools, and workforce dispersal.
- 3Plan for expansion: Agencies must submit a plan to expand telework beyond 2019 levels, describing how the expansion would be implemented.
- 4Certification standard: The Director of OPM must certify that the proposed plan would (a) improve mission performance and customer service, (b) reduce real estate and locality-pay costs, and (c) ensure secure IT and data access for teleworkers without raising overall costs.
- 5Compliance path: If a plan is not certified, agencies may revise and resubmit; the Director’s certification is required before any expanded telework could be implemented, and plans certified by the Director can be sent to Congress.