SB27, the Federal Employee Return to Work Act, would change how certain federal employees are paid if they telework. The bill defines a “covered employee” as a federal employee who teleworks at least one day per week, or at least 20 percent of the week under an alternative work schedule, while excluding several categories such as employees with disabilities receiving reasonable accommodations, Foreign Service members, federal law enforcement officers, active-duty military members, and certain employees whose official worksite is not covered by the referenced locality-pay rule.
For covered employees, the bill would bar annual across-the-board pay adjustments under 5 U.S.C. § 5303 and would require their basic pay to be set at the “Rest of U.S.” locality pay rate under 5 U.S.C. § 5304, with no further locality adjustments. The bill would take effect at the start of the first full fiscal year after enactment, meaning it would prospectively reduce or freeze pay growth for the affected teleworking workforce rather than changing pay immediately upon passage.
Impact
The bill would amend the practical operation of federal pay law by carving out a class of teleworking employees from annual pay raises and locality pay increases. It would affect Title 5 pay provisions, especially the annual adjustment and locality pay statutes, and would likely reduce compensation growth for many federal civilian employees who work remotely at least part of the week. Agencies would need to identify covered employees, apply the “Rest of U.S.” locality rate, and exclude the specified categories from the new restrictions.
Sentiment
No committee transcript or vote record is available, so there is no direct evidence of debate or support levels in the provided materials. Based on the bill text and title, the measure appears to reflect a policy preference for encouraging in-person work or limiting pay advantages associated with telework. The overall framing suggests a reform-oriented, cost-containment approach rather than a broadly bipartisan consensus measure.
Contention
The main point of contention is likely to be whether telework should affect federal compensation at all. Supporters would likely argue that employees who work remotely should not receive the same pay treatment as fully in-office workers, while opponents would likely view the bill as punitive toward telework and potentially harmful to recruitment, retention, and workforce flexibility. Exemptions for disabled employees, Foreign Service personnel, law enforcement, and active-duty military suggest the bill tries to avoid sweeping in groups with distinct work arrangements, but the scope of the remaining covered workforce could still be disputed.