Central Louisiana News

U.S. Senator Bill Cassidy, M.D. (R-LA) introduced two bills aimed at bringing federal employees back to the office, addressing telework practices, and eliminating certain pay bonuses in retirement. The Federal Employee Return to Work Act proposes that federal employees who telework at least one day a week should not receive raises and special locality bonuses meant for high-cost-of-living areas if they are working from home. The Federal Employee Locality Accountability in Retirement Act seeks to exclude locality bonuses when calculating retirement payments for those enrolled in the Federal Employees Retirement System (FERS).

“Federal employees get paid extra to work in higher-cost cities. But what if they don’t show up to work? Why should they get paid?” said Dr. Cassidy. “If you don’t show up for work, you don’t get paid at the same rate just for teleworking.”

A report by the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) found that 17 of 24 federal agencies were using 25% or less of their headquarters' capacity at the beginning of 2023. GAO identified six agencies that were on average 91% vacant while their employees still received a 16.44% locality bonus compared to the rest of the country, regardless of their in-office attendance. These agencies included the Social Security Administration, the Small Business Administration, and the Department of Housing and Urban Development.

The amount an employee receives through FERS is partly determined by averaging their highest three consecutive years of base pay. Civil servants receiving higher locality pay also receive more benefits in retirement. Currently, nearly 1.2 million retired civil servants are receiving FERS annuity, with an average payout of $2,126 per month.

Cassidy has consistently advocated for all federal employees to return to work following COVID-19 precautions being lifted. Last year, he questioned U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Xavier Becerra on why most department staff had not returned to work and later demanded transparency from HHS regarding their return-to-work plans.

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