The Senate may yet vote on its version of the annual defense authorization bill, which would be the best, and possibly last, opportunity to ban a return of an excepted service Schedule F. Image: Konstantin L/Shutterstock.com
The House is continuing to advance appropriations bills that reduce funding levels for most federal agencies—with potential implications for staffing levels and agency operations—while also targeting telework and other federal workplace practices.
The chamber now has passed six of the 12 regular appropriations bills for fiscal 2025, most recently the measures covering DHS; State and related agencies; and DoD. All of those bills would defund DEI programs at affected agencies and most would require those agencies to more fully account for their telework practices and building occupancy rates as a possible prelude to reducing the former and forcing agencies to shed under-used space.
The defense bill contains similar language and would go farther by banning any offsite work “on a regular and recurring basis” by DoD employees—or contractor employees—at the government’s largest employer.
All of the other six bills have cleared at least the subcommittee level, including most recently the measure covering HHS, Education and SSA. That bill would set the latter agency’s budget at under $12 billion, a decrease of $453 million below the 2024 level and $1.6 billion below the 2025 request.
A Republican summary said a goal is “reducing funding for Baltimore and Washington, D.C., Social Security Administration offices due to reduced in-person staffing.” Democrats said that “would close Social Security field offices, extend wait times for retirement claims and customer service, and delay disability claims decisions.”
Two of remaining six have passed the full Appropriations Committee, making them likely the next in line for floor votes. One of those is the general government bill, which would ban DEI programs, require more accounting of telework and office space usage, and ban the return of a COVID-19 vaccination mandate—all government-wide.
That measure meanwhile is silent regarding a January federal employee pay raise, a step toward allowing President Biden’s recommendation for 2 percent to take effect by default.
The House is pushing to pass the remaining bills in the three working weeks remaining before a recess that will last from early August to early September. However, the Senate counterpart committee has not produced even first versions of any of its measures. Whether it will bring out any before the recess is uncertain but it is virtually certain that they will be far from the House’s versions on both spending and policy issues.
In the time remaining before the recess the Senate may however vote on its version of the annual defense authorization bill, a separate measure from the DoD appropriations bill. That would be the best, and possibly last, opportunity for an amendment to put into law a ban against the return of an excepted service Schedule F by administrative action. The House already has passed its version of that bill.
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