House Oversight hearing focuses on federal telework after Social Security telework pact and customer-service gains

Chairman Comer opened the House Committee on Oversight and Reform hearing saying President Trump’s incoming administration will find many federal headquarters largely empty and arguing that prolonged pandemic‑era telework has harmed agency performance and downtown economies. “When President Trump’s team enters federal agency headquarters in and around Washington DC, they’ll find them to be mostly empty,” he said.

The hearing centered on a November 27, 2024 collective bargaining amendment between the Social Security Administration (SSA) and the American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) that witnesses described as preserving existing telework eligibility and schedules through October 25, 2029. Critics said the timing—signed after the November election and days before the outgoing commissioner left office—effectively limits an incoming administration’s ability to change telework arrangements quickly.

Supporters and agency veterans disputed that characterization and emphasized operational context. “Social Security is a lifeline to 72,000,000 Americans,” former SSA Commissioner Martin O’Malley told the committee, and he attributed several performance gains last year to management actions taken while he led the agency. O’Malley cited a fall in the 1‑800 speed‑to‑answer from about 42 minutes to 12.8 minutes, a 6.2% year‑over‑year productivity increase, and reductions in administrative law judge hearing backlogs.

The hearing split along familiar lines. Republicans framed telework as a cause of empty downtowns and falling transit revenues, pointing to Government Accountability Office and Public Buildings Reform Board data that, as Chairman Comer noted, found many large headquarters with low occupancy rates. Tom Davis, president of the Federal City Council, described a local economic hit in the Washington region: “This unprecedented shift to remote work has devastated our local economy,” he testified, citing downtown retail vacancy and transit ridership declines.

Democrats and several witnesses cautioned against blanket rules that would eliminate telework. Ranking Member Conley and others called for a balanced, mission‑based approach that preserves tools for recruitment and continuity of operations, and warned against politicizing personnel policy. Workforce experts also argued telework and hybrid models can be harnessed with performance metrics. “Telework can be useful, but a lack of accountability contributes to abuse,” Rachel Gresler, visiting fellow in workforce at the Economic Policy Innovation Center, told the committee, while Mika Cross, who has worked in remote‑first private firms, said telework can yield savings and improve recruitment and retention; she cited a figure that, according to her statement, telework saved taxpayers “$230,000,000” last year in reduced space and operating costs.

Several members pressed O’Malley on specifics of the AFGE amendment to SSA’s collective bargaining agreement. O’Malley said portions of the telework language predated his tenure and that during his time he increased on‑site presence in headquarters and regional offices, and that the agreement retains management authority to “temporarily change, reduce, or suspend approved telework days ... due to operational needs.” Opponents of the agreement focused on a clause they said requires the agency to “adhere to the current number of telework days, eligible positions, and percentage of employees permitted to telework until October 25, 2029,” warning that language could be used to resist operational changes.

Republican members repeatedly pointed to constituent casework showing long phone‑line wait times and difficulty getting walk‑in help at field offices. Democrats and O’Malley countered that staffing for SSA has been reduced “to a 50‑year low” while beneficiary rolls have grown, a dynamic they said drives many service problems. O’Malley said the agency’s recent performance gains occurred despite the staffing shortfall and urged Congress to restore staffing resources.

Committee members also probed broader union practice and transparency issues. Witnesses and some members raised concerns about “official time” — federal employees paid to perform union work — and the degree to which agencies track and publish related costs. Rachel Gresler told the committee that taxpayers pay for union representation activities on federal time and recommended restoring or improving reporting; committee Republicans asked for updated federal accounting of official‑time hours and costs.

Members on both sides raised follow‑on policy options. Republicans pressed an agenda to curtail what they described as excessive telework and to pursue legislation (cited at the hearing as the “Show Up Act”) to return federal telework to pre‑pandemic levels. Democrats urged targeted investments in SSA staffing, continued use of telework where mission‑appropriate, and strengthened performance‑metric frameworks rather than across‑the‑board mandates.

The committee did not take a formal vote; members asked witnesses to submit written materials and closed the hearing with unanimous‑consent orders to include cited reports in the record. The hearing showcased sharp bipartisan differences over how to balance in‑person presence, continuity of operations, workforce recruitment, and downtown economic impacts, while surfacing operational details SSA leaders say are needed to sustain customer‑service gains.

Looking ahead, lawmakers said they plan additional oversight and possible legislation addressing telework reporting, official time transparency, and SSA resourcing; staff follow‑ups and written Q&A from members were ordered into the hearing record.