HouseH.R. 10713119th Congress
Federal Telework Protection Act
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[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 10713 Introduced in House (IH)]
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119th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. R. 10713
To amend title 5, United States Code, to establish a process for
considering telework requests of Federal employees, and for other
purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
October 1, 2026
Mr. Subramanyam (for himself, Mr. Walkinshaw, Mr. Hoyer, Ms. McClellan,
Mr. Ivey, and Mr. Lynch) introduced the following bill; which was
referred to the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To amend title 5, United States Code, to establish a process for
considering telework requests of Federal employees, and for other
purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Federal Telework Protection Act''.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
Congress finds the following:
(1) Experience in the Federal Government since the
enactment of the Telework Enhancement Act of 2010 indicates
that the ability of the Federal workforce to telework--
(A) improves agencies' productivity, emergency
preparedness, continuity of operations in disruptive
circumstances;
(B) reduces staff turnover, absenteeism, lost
productivity, and use of sick leave;
(C) improves employee health;
(D) promotes savings of funds and the effective use
energy, funding, and other resources; and
(E) helps with the retention and recruitment of
qualified talent into the Federal workforce.
(2) It is in the public interest that the Federal workforce
performs at the highest levels of productivity and performance
to accomplish the operations of the Government. Telework
improves and facilitates the efficient accomplishment of
operations of the Government, therefore telework for Federal
employees is in the public interest.
SEC. 3. FEDERAL EMPLOYEE TELEWORK REQUEST PROCESS.
(a) In General.--Section 6505 of title 5, United States Code, is
amended--
(1) in subsection (a), by striking the second sentence and
inserting ``The Telework Managing Officer shall be within the
executive agency telework office established under subsection
(e).'';
(2) by amending subsection (c) to read as follows:
``(c) Status Within the Agency.--The Telework Managing Officer of
an agency shall be--
``(1) a senior official of the agency who has direct access
to the head of the agency; and
``(2) a career position in the civil service and shall not
be--
``(A) a political position (as that term is defined
in section 4(a) of Public Law 114-136 (5 U.S.C. 3101
note)); or
``(B) a position in the excepted service.''; and
(3) by adding at the end the following:
``(e) Telework Requests.--
``(1) Initial request.--
``(A) In general.--An employee of an executive
branch agency may make a request to telework to the
employee's immediate supervisor. The supervisor shall
make a reasonable determination to approve or deny a
telework request based on the consideration of
conditions in paragraph (3)(B), the employee's job
requirements, and other factors as the supervisor may
deem appropriate. With respect to any request approved
by a supervisor under this paragraph, the supervisor
shall provide a clear number of telework days to the
employee during a clearly defined period of time, as
such supervisor deems appropriate.
``(B) Urgent medical condition.--If practicable,
the supervisor shall grant any employee with any urgent
medical condition a period of ten to fifteen business
days of telework while the applicable request is
considered by the supervisor.
``(2) Appeal to telework office.--If a supervisor denies a
request under paragraph (1), and the employee has a substantial
reason to believe that the supervisor did not make a reasonable
determiniation under paragraph (1)(A) or consider a condition
described in paragraph (3)(B) that the employee alleges to have
met in the request, or the employee requires a modification of
the amount and duration of telework provided by the supervisor
under such paragraph, the employee may file an appeal with the
telework office of the executive agency established under
paragraph (4).
``(3) Application.--
``(A) Retaliation prohibited.--No adverse personnel
action may be carried out in retaliation against an
employee filing a teleworking request under paragraph
(1) or an appeal under paragraph (2).
``(B) Conditions.--In determining whether to grant
an employee's telework request under paragraph (1) or
under an appeal under paragraph (2), the supervisor or
telework office (as the case may be) shall consider
medical conditions, caregiving, disability, and
significant commuting time to the employee's official
duty station.
``(C) Written explanation.--Any decision by an
immediate supervisor under paragraph (1) or a telework
office under paragraph (2) shall include a written
explanation of the decision, including how the decision
fulfills the requirements of this subsection.
``(4) Telework office.--
``(A) In general.--There is established within each
executive agency a telework office. Each office shall
be responsible for reviewing appeals under paragraph
(2).
``(B) Telework requests relating to health.--With
respect to any such appeal based on medical reasons,
the telework office may request from the employee
medical or other supplemental information the office
considers appropriate. The office shall ensure that
such information remains confidential and may not be
shared without the employee's consent.
``(C) MSPB appeal.--An employee may appeal an
adverse decision by the telework office to the Merit
Systems Protection Board under section 7701.
``(5) Automatic approval.--If a supervisor does not issue
any decision with respect to a request under paragraph (1)
within 90 days after submission of such request, or the
telework office does not issue any decision with respect to an
appeal under paragraph (2) within 90 days after submission of
the appeal, the teleworking request shall be deemed approved
until the date a final decision is made under either such
paragraph.
``(6) Telework policies.--Each executive branch agency
shall update the agency's telework policy to reflect the
telework request process established under the Federal Telework
Protection Act. Each such policy shall be published on the
agency's public website.
``(7) Application.--The authority under this subsection to
grant an employee telework shall be in addition to any other
authority providing telework pursuant to this chapter.
``(8) Reports.--Not later than 1 year after the date of the
enactment of the Federal Telework Protection Act and annually
thereafter, the Director of the Office of Personnel Management
shall submit a report, to the Committee on Oversight and
Government Reform of the House of Representatives and the
Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs of the
Senate, on agency implementation of this subsection. Each such
report shall include--
``(A) the total number of employees that had a
teleworking request approved under this subsection;
``(B) the total number of employees that had a
teleworking request denied under this subsection;
``(C) the total number of requests that were based
on conditions described in paragraph (3)(B); and
``(D) the total number of teleworking requests
under this section that have not been processed.''.
(b) Rule of Construction.--Nothing in this Act or any amendment
made by this Act shall be construed to supersede any collective
bargaining agreement in effect on the date of the enactment of this
Act, or entered into after such date, between the Federal Government
and any labor organization. For any such agreement entered into on or
after such date, the parties may bargain the substantive conditions and
procedures of telework notwithstanding this Act or any amendment made
by this Act.
SEC. 4. LIMITATION ON RESTRICTING TELEWORK.
No Federal funds may be obligated or expended to implement the
presidential memorandum titled ``Return to In Person Work'', issued on
January 20, 2025, or any subsequent order or directive, and agency
guidance associated with such memorandum to eliminate remote work
arrangements and require employees to return to work in-person at their
respective duty stations.
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