In recent years, the debate over remote work has intensified, particularly within the federal government.

After more than a year of pressure from Congress on the Biden administration to reduce telework among federal employees, the release of the latest Office of Management and Budget report provides critical insights that challenge this pressure.

The report shows that, contrary to congressional concerns, federal agencies are easily exceeding the administration’s 50 percent in-office goal for telework-eligible employees. In fact, government-wide, roughly 61 percent of the work hours performed by telework-eligible federal employees have been in person​​.

The data indicate that a majority of federal employees are already meeting or exceeding in-office expectations. About 54 percent of the federal government's 2.2 million employees work fully in person due to job requirements, with the other 46 percent eligible for telework. Among those eligible for telework, only about 10 percent work fully remotely​. These figures suggest that telework is not as pervasive as some lawmakers may have believed, and that agencies are balancing in-person and remote work​ effectively.

According to the report, agencies such as the Departments of Agriculture and State have approximately 80 percent of their telework-eligible employees working in person​. Other agencies, including the Departments of Treasury, Education, and Housing and Urban Development, report less than 40 percent in-person work hours for........

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