Press Releases

House & Senate Committee Leaders Highlight Cost-Saving Public Buildings & Federal Office Space Reforms in Letter to Trump Administration

Washington, D.C., February 7, 2025 | Justin Harclerode (202) 225-9446
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House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Chairman Sam Graves (R-MO); Senate Environment and Public Works (EPW) Committee Chairman Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV); House Economic Development, Public Buildings, and Emergency Management Subcommittee Chairman Scott Perry (R-PA); and Senate EPW Transportation and Infrastructure Subcommittee Chairman Kevin Cramer (R-ND) today sent a letter to the Trump Administration highlighting provisions, signed into law last month as part of the Thomas R. Carper Water Resources Development Act of 2024 (WRDA) (P.L. 118-272), that provided unprecedented authority for the Trump Administration to right-size the Federal real estate portfolio and save taxpayers billions of dollars.

In the letter addressed to Director of the Office of Management and Budget Russell Vought, Acting Administrator of the General Service Administration Stephen Ehikian, and Commissioner of the Public Building Service Michael Peters, the lawmakers refer to the “Public Buildings Reforms” section location in Title III of Division B of WRDA 2024. This title of the law gives the Administration new authorities to improve the management of the Federal government's real estate portfolio, address its inefficient utilization of office space, and require Federal agencies to bring employees back to the office or lose office space.

“To maximize the effectiveness of these provisions, it is critical that implementation begins as soon as possible to meet deadlines and take full advantage of the authorities provided to the Administration in this legislation,” the lawmakers wrote.

In 2023, at the request of the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) conducted a review of the actual utilization of 24 agency headquarters buildings to better understand how the Federal government is utilizing its real estate portfolio.  The report showed that on average, 17 of the 24 agency headquarters reviewed were at 25 percent or less utilization, with some agencies as low as nine percent.  

Since the publication of the GAO report, the Committee leaders have been working to increase utilization of Federal office space and offload buildings that aren’t being used or at capacity. In the letter, the Committee leaders point out that the public buildings reforms included in WRDA 2024 aim to do exactly that.

Additionally, the Members wrote that the Federal real estate portfolio is so bloated that, “Even if 100 percent of the Federal employees returned to the office, the taxpayer would still be paying for excess space. For example, one agency that was the subject of GAO’s 2023 review reported that, even if all their employees came into the office on the same day, only 67 percent of their headquarters building would be utilized.”

“It is unacceptable for American taxpayers to pay for space that is sitting empty, and we urge you to utilize these new authorities to consolidate Federal space and support your efforts to direct employees to return to work in-person.  As Chairmen of the Congressional Committees and Subcommittees with jurisdiction over public buildings and improved grounds of the United States, our Committees are willing to assist the Administration’s efforts to protect the taxpayer’s dollar,” wrote the Members.

Read the full letter here.

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