WASHINGTON — Sen. Joni Ernst, R-Iowa, proposed a bill Thursday that would relocate 30% of the federal workforce outside of the Washington area.

What You Need To Know

  • Sen. Joni Ernst introduced the Drain the Swamp Act Thursday

  • It would direct the Office of Management and Budget to relocate at least 30% of all federal agency headquarters workers in Washington

  • It would also require the rest of the headquarters employees to show up to the office 100% of the time

  • The bill directs the OMB to facilitate the sale of excess headquarters office space

The Decentralizing and Reorganizing Agency Infrastructure Nationwide to Harness Efficient Services, Workforce Administration and Management Practices Act — an acronym for the "Drain the Swamp" Act — would also require the rest of headquarters employees to work at their offices 100% of the time.

“My investigations have exposed how bureaucrats have been doing just about everything besides their job during the workday,” Ernst said in a statement. “Federal employees have shown they don’t want to work in Washington, and in the Christmas spirit, I am making their wish come true.”

The bill would also direct the Office of Management and Budget to sell excess office space.

The American Federation of Government Employees union did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Spectrum News.

Last week, Ernst released an “Out of Office” report. Subtitled “Bureaucrats on the beach and in bubble baths but not in office buildings,” the report said one-third of federal employees work entirely remotely and 6% work in person full-time. 

The AFGE has previously disputed Ernst's numbers, arguing that 54% of federal workers work completely in-person at jobs that require them to be on-site each day an only 10% of civilian federal personnel are in fully remote positions.

The chair of the Senate DOGE Caucus, who is working with President-elect Donald Trump’s newly formed Department of Government Efficiency, said up to 68% of teleworking employees are making more money by “claiming to be working in areas with higher pay rates while actually working elsewhere.”

Ernst said the legislation is designed to “remind public servants who they work for.”