Commission to Relocate the Federal Bureaucracy Act
H.R. 202, the Commission to Relocate the Federal Bureaucracy Act, would create a formal Commission to study moving certain federal agencies away from the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area to other locations in the United States. The bill defines “covered agencies” as those that are not security-related (with the President determining which agencies fall into this category) and requires a 1-year report assessing whether relocation is appropriate. The study would consider factors such as cost of living, existing infrastructure and land availability, local industry links and potential public-private partnerships, and historical telework participation by the agency’s workforce in the five years prior to enactment. The Commission’s findings could inform potential transfers, but the bill does not itself authorize funding or mandate relocation.
Key Points
- 1Establishment of a Commission to study relocation of covered agencies away from the DC metro area to other parts of the United States.
- 2Definitions:
- 3- Covered agency: an agency that is not a security-related agency, as determined by the President.
- 4- DC metropolitan area: includes D.C., parts of Maryland (Montgomery and Prince George’s Counties), and parts of Virginia (Arlington, Fairfax, Loudoun, Prince William Counties, and the City of Alexandria).
- 5- Telework: as defined in existing law (work performed away from the traditional workplace).
- 6Commission membership: 16 members drawn from major national leadership, including the Director of the White House Presidential Personnel Office; Director of the Office of Personnel Management; Comptroller General; Director of the Office of Management and Budget; and the heads of Agriculture, Commerce, Education, Energy, Health and Human Services, Housing and Urban Development, Interior, Labor, Transportation, Veterans Affairs; Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency; and the Commissioner of Food and Drugs.
- 7Reporting requirement: The Commission must deliver a report to Congress within 1 year of enactment detailing the study and recommendations.
- 8Evaluation criteria: The report must consider (A) financial efficiency and relative cost of living; (B) existing infrastructure and availability of private land; (C) presence of related industries and potential public-private partnerships to support agency operations; and (D) historical telework participation (whether a sizeable portion of the workforce has engaged in telework in the 5 years prior to enactment).