REMOTE Act
Sen. Ernst Introduces REMOTE Act to Track Federal Employee Logins and Telework Productivity
The REMOTE Act is currently in the early stages of the legislative process. It was recently introduced in the Senate and sent to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs for review. The bill is actively moving as it waits for the committee to decide on its next steps.
Legislative Progress
While there is strong interest in federal oversight, bills targeting telework often face pushback from federal unions and may struggle to pass a divided Congress.
Key Points
Impact Analysis
Personal Impact
Federal employees who telework would face significant new monitoring of their login activity, connection times, and network traffic. Managers would regularly review this data, creating a more surveillance-heavy work environment for remote workers. The bill also requires reporting on the 'adverse effects' of telework, suggesting a skeptical framing that could be used to justify scaling back remote work options. Employees who lose telework privileges would have the revocation formally documented, which could affect their personnel records.
“directives for managers of teleworking employees with respect to that Executive department to periodically review the network traffic generated by each such teleworking employee while that teleworking employee is working remotely”
Milestones
Read twice and referred to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs.
Sent to a congressional committee for expert review. The committee decides whether this bill moves forward.
Introduced in Senate
The bill was officially filed and given a number. It now enters the legislative queue.
Votes
No votes have been recorded for this legislation yet.
Related News
7 articlesSenate Republican wants to track computer usage of agency teleworkers
The REMOTE Act, introduced by Sen. Joni Ernst, would require federal agencies to record login activity and network traffic of teleworkers. Managers must periodically review this data, including daily login counts and duration, to ensure productivity and accountability in the federal workforce.
Sen. Ernst Reintroduces Bills to Crack Down on Fed Telework, Spending
The REMOTE Act aims to create accountability by requiring federal agencies to track and report computer usage for both teleworking and in-office employees. Managers would collect data on daily logins and connection duration, comparing remote rates to those working at agency headquarters.
Republicans Aim at Federal Telework, DC Offices in Flurry of Bills
Sen. Joni Ernst proposed the REMOTE Act (S. 21) to mandate agencies measure login data and network traffic from teleworking federal workers' computers. The bill is part of a trio of legislative efforts targeting the federal workforce and underutilized D.C. office space.
Source Information
Document Type
Congressional Bill
Official Title
REMOTE Act
Data Sources
Sponsor
Cosponsors
(2)Analysis generated by AI. Always verify with official sources.