The bill will require the GSA and the OMB to establish standards to measure occupancy in public buildings and federally leased space. Image: ND700/Shutterstock.com
By: FEDweek StaffAmong the late actions in the 2023-2024 Congress was adding to an unrelated water resources bill (S-4367) language of a bill the House had passed to set standards for measuring building occupancy rates and require steps to dispose of space if a building’s rate is below 60 percent for more than a year.
The measure, which President Biden recently signed, incorporates the “Use It” Act that was a response to GAO reports on lower building occupancy rates that further cited the difficulty of quantifying excess space because agencies measure occupancy rates in different ways. The bill will require the GSA and the OMB to establish standards to measure occupancy in public buildings and federally leased space.
Agencies would have to use those standards to report on their occupancy rates, using information such as PIV badge swipe data and other technologies such as sensors. Agencies would have to report within a year on the “occupancy and the actual utilization rates” of their federally owned or leased space, based on a benchmark of 150 usable square feet per person.
The GSA in turn would have to take actions to increase usage in buildings that are below 60 percent usage by that measure for more than a year. That would start with putting the agency on notice and, if the usage rate remains that low for a second year, having GSA take steps “including consolidating the tenant agency with another agency, selling or disposing of excess capacity space, and adjusting space requirements, as appropriate, for any replacement space.”
Also included in the water resources bill was language extending through calendar year 2026 the Public Buildings Reform Board, which exists to recommend properties for sale under expedited procedures; the board otherwise would have sun-setted in May.
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