Rep. Roger Williams (R-TX), chairman of the House Small Business Committee, slammed the Small Business Administration on Tuesday for not going far enough in calling the federal workforce back to in-person work.
Both Republicans and Democrats have called for the federal workforce to end its pandemic-era protocols of allowing government employees to work from home, leaving federal buildings in Washington, D.C., empty at the expense of taxpayers.
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“It’s refreshing to see the SBA has taken the advice of this Committee and changed their work from home policy. However, this is still not good enough," Williams told the Washington Examiner. "The SBA, like the rest of Main Street America, should be showing up to work, in person, every day.”
Last week, SBA increased its minimum of three in-person days per two-week period to five in-person days. The agency in March had a policy of two in-person days per pay period, or one day a week.
“Many small businesses never had the luxury to work from home, oftentimes having to decide between staying home or staying in business," Williams continued. "The SBA allowing its employees to only come in to work for half a pay period is unacceptable in every way. It’s long past time for the SBA to take a page out of Main Street’s book and get back to work for the American people and help our nation’s entrepreneurs.”
In September of 2022, President Joe Biden declared that "the pandemic is over" and in May the Biden administration ended the federal emergency declaration related to the coronavirus.
In February, the House passed the SHOW UP Act, which would end coronavirus-era work policies for federal employees, with only three Democratic votes.
Four months after the end of the emergency declaration, Williams and eight other Small Business Committee members sent a letter to SBA Administrator Isabel Guzman requesting a detailed plan for its return-to-work policy.
They also asked for a number of general schedule employees, the class of mostly white-collar workers in the government, who use work-from-home policies but are receiving regional pay that does not align with their true living situation, as the federal pay scale adjusts for area-based living expenses.
Similarly, the letter requested information on the number of senior executive service employees, those ranked above the GS scale who are hierarchically equivalent to a general officer in the Armed Forces, who have also been working from home.
Despite the Aug. 28 deadline, Williams's office said SBA has yet to respond.
While some seek the federal return to in-person work as a matter of principle, several audits have also shown that the economic effect on businesses and real estate in the nation's capital has been devastating.
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It costs taxpayers billions of dollars to keep government buildings running, and many have been empty. In addition, workers not partaking in retail shopping in the federal district has deprived businesses of revenue and the city of tax dollars.
The Washington Examiner reached out to SBA for comment.