I 
119TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 1280 
To require the head of each Executive agency to relocate 30 percent of 
the employees assigned to the headquarters of the Executive agency 
to duty stations outside the Washington metropolitan area, and for 
other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
FEBRUARY 13, 2025 
Mr. BEAN of Florida introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
Committee on Oversight and Government Reform 
A BILL 
To require the head of each Executive agency to relocate 
30 percent of the employees assigned to the headquarters 
of the Executive agency to duty stations outside the 
Washington metropolitan area, and for other purposes. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Decentralizing and Re-
organizing Agency Infrastructure Nation-wide To Harness 
Efficient Services, Workforce Administration, and Man-
agement Practices Act’’ or the ‘‘DRAIN THE SWAMP 
Act’’. 
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SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 
In this Act: 
(1) BUDGET JUSTIFICATION MATERIALS.—The 
term ‘‘budget justification materials’’ has the mean-
ing given that term in section 3(b)(2)(A) of the Fed-
eral Funding Accountability and Transparency Act 
of 2006 (31 U.S.C. 6101 note). 
(2) EMPLOYEE.—The term ‘‘employee’’— 
(A) has the meaning given that term in 
section 2105 of title 5, United States Code; and 
(B) does not include an individual who— 
(i) in the event of a lapse in appro-
priations, would be an excepted employee 
and exempt from the limitation on vol-
untary services under section 1342 of title 
31, United States Code, because the duties 
of the position in which the individual is 
serving are performing mission-essential 
functions of the Executive agency employ-
ing the individual that are necessary for 
purposes of defending the United States 
against imminent threats; and 
(ii) is serving in a position within— 
(I) the Executive Office of the 
President; or 
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(II) a component, the mission of 
which is related to national security, 
of— 
(aa) the Department of De-
fense, including— 
(AA) the Defense Intel-
ligence Agency; 
(BB) the National Se-
curity Agency; and 
(CC) 
the 
National 
Geospatial-Intelligence 
Agency; 
(bb) the Department of En-
ergy; 
(cc) 
the 
Department 
of 
Homeland Security; 
(dd) the Office of the Direc-
tor of National Intelligence; or 
(ee) the Central Intelligence 
Agency. 
(3) EXECUTIVE AGENCY.—The term ‘‘Executive 
agency’’ means an agency, as defined in section 551 
of title 5, United States Code, that is in the execu-
tive branch of the Government. 
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(4) HEADQUARTERS EMPLOYEE OF AN EXECU-
TIVE AGENCY.—The term ‘‘headquarters employee of 
an Executive agency’’ means— 
(A) an employee of an Executive agency 
whose permanent duty station is at the head-
quarters of the Executive agency; or 
(B) an employee of an Executive agency— 
(i) who teleworks on a full-time basis; 
and 
(ii) whose rate of pay is calculated 
based on the Washington metropolitan 
area rate of pay. 
(5) HEADQUARTERS OF THE EXECUTIVE AGEN-
CY.—The term ‘‘headquarters of the Executive agen-
cy’’, with respect to an Executive agency, means the 
building serving as the principal managerial and ad-
ministrative center of the Executive agency. 
(6) PAY LOCALITY.—The term ‘‘pay locality’’ 
has the meaning given that term in section 5302 of 
title 5, United States Code. 
(7) RURAL.—The term ‘‘rural’’ means any area 
that is not designated as an urban area, based on 
the most recent data available from the Bureau of 
the Census. 
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(8) TELEWORK.—The term ‘‘telework’’ has the 
meaning given that term in section 6501 of title 5, 
United States Code. 
(9) TELEWORK ON A FULL-TIME BASIS.—The 
term ‘‘telework on a full-time basis’’ means that an 
employee is authorized to telework for 100 percent 
of the work days of the employee per pay period. 
(10) WASHINGTON METROPOLITAN AREA.—The 
term ‘‘Washington metropolitan area’’ means the ge-
ographic area to which the Washington metropolitan 
area rate of pay applies. 
(11) WASHINGTON METROPOLITAN AREA RATE 
OF PAY.—The term ‘‘Washington metropolitan area 
rate of pay’’ means the rate of pay in effect for the 
pay locality designated as ‘‘Washington-Baltimore- 
Arlington, DC–MD–VA–WV–PA’’. 
SEC. 3. RELOCATION OF EMPLOYEES. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any other provi-
sions of law, and not later than 1 year after the date of 
enactment of this Act, the head of each Executive agency 
shall— 
(1) change the permanent duty station of not 
less than 30 percent of the headquarters employees 
of the Executive agency, as of the date of enactment 
of this Act, to be at an office of the Executive agen-
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cy at a location outside the Washington metropolitan 
area, which shall be at locations throughout the re-
gions of the Executive agency; and 
(2) for each employee of the Executive agency 
whose permanent duty station is changed under 
paragraph (1), ensure that— 
(A) the rate of pay of the employee is cal-
culated based on the pay locality for the perma-
nent duty station of the employee; and 
(B) the employee is not authorized to 
telework on a full-time basis. 
(b) DETERMINATION OF NEW DUTY STATIONS.— 
The head of each Executive agency shall, in determining 
the permanent duty stations of headquarters employees of 
the Executive agency under subsection (a)— 
(1) promote geographic diversity, including con-
sideration of rural markets; and 
(2) ensure adequate staffing throughout the re-
gions of the Executive agency, to promote in-person 
customer service. 
(c) DETERMINATION OF EMPLOYEES ELIGIBLE FOR 
A CHANGE IN DUTY STATION.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para-
graph (2), the head of each Executive agency shall 
include each headquarters employee of the Executive 
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agency as eligible for a change in permanent duty 
station under subsection (a). 
(2) EXCEPTION.—A headquarters employee of 
an Executive agency who is a qualified individual 
who receives an accommodation to telework on a 
full-time basis as a reasonable accommodation under 
title I of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 
(42 U.S.C. 12111 et seq.)— 
(A) shall not be determined to be eligible 
for a change in permanent duty station under 
subsection (a); and 
(B) shall be counted as a headquarters em-
ployee of the Executive agency for purposes of 
complying with subsection (a)(1). 
(3) NOTICE
OF
DETERMINATION
OF
ELIGI-
BILITY.—Not later than the day before the date on 
which the head of an Executive agency submits the 
report required under subsection (d), the head of the 
Executive agency shall notify each headquarters em-
ployee of the Executive agency who the head of the 
Executive agency determines is eligible for a change 
in permanent duty station under subsection (a) of 
that determination. 
(d) REPORT.—Not later than 180 days after the date 
of enactment of this Act, the head of each Executive agen-
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required under subsection (d), the head of the Exec-
utive agency shall notify each headquarters employee 
of the Executive agency whose permanent duty sta-
tion will be changed to be at an office of the Execu-
tive agency located outside the Washington metro-
politan area under subsection (a)— 
(A) that, effective 90 days after the date 
of the notification— 
(i) the permanent duty station of the 
employee shall be changed; 
(ii) the rate of pay of the employee 
shall be calculated based on the pay local-
ity for such permanent duty station; and 
(iii) the employee shall not be author-
ized to telework on a full-time basis; and 
(B) of the location of such permanent duty 
station. 
(2) FULL-TIME TELEWORKERS REMAINING IN 
THE WASHINGTON METROPOLITAN AREA.— 
(A) IN GENERAL.—For any employee de-
scribed in subparagraph (B), effective on the 
date that is 180 days after the date on which 
the head of the Executive agency employing the 
employee submits the report required under 
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subsection (d), the employee shall not be au-
thorized to telework on a full-time basis. 
(B) EMPLOYEES COVERED.—An employee 
described in this subparagraph is a head-
quarters employee of an Executive agency— 
(i) who teleworks on a full-time basis, 
as of the date of enactment of this Act; 
(ii) who is not subject to an exception 
under subsection (c)(2); and 
(iii) whose permanent duty station is 
not changed to be an office of the Execu-
tive agency at a location outside the Wash-
ington metropolitan area under subsection 
(a). 
SEC. 4. REDUCTION IN HEADQUARTERS OFFICE SPACE. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 60 days after the 
date of enactment of this Act, the Director of the Office 
of Management and Budget shall— 
(1) issue a memorandum directing that the 
amount of real property serving as the headquarters 
of an Executive agency that is owned or leased by 
the Federal Government be reduced by not less than 
30 percent; and 
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(2) in identifying property to be sold or for 
which a lease is to be terminated or not renewed, 
prioritize— 
(A) the disposal of buildings; and 
(B) co-locating the headquarters of Execu-
tive agencies in as few locations as practicable. 
(b) IMPLEMENTATION.—If the head of an Executive 
agency is directed to reduce office space under the memo-
randum issued under subsection (a), the head of the Exec-
utive agency shall— 
(1) begin reducing office space in accordance 
with the memorandum not later than 180 days after 
the date of enactment of this Act; and 
(2) complete the reduction of office space in ac-
cordance with the memorandum not later than 2 
years after the date of enactment of this Act. 
SEC. 5. INFORMATION INCLUDED IN BUDGET JUSTIFICA-
TION MATERIALS PROVIDED TO CONGRESS. 
The head of each Executive agency shall include in 
the first budget justification materials of the Executive 
agency submitted after the date of enactment of this Act, 
and the budget justification materials of the Executive 
agency for each fiscal year thereafter— 
(1) the number of headquarters employees of 
the Executive agency; 
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(2) the number of employees of the Executive 
agency assigned to a permanent duty station in— 
(A) a field office of the Executive agency; 
(B) a district office of the Executive agen-
cy; or 
(C) a regional office of the Executive agen-
cy; 
(3) the number of employees of the Executive 
agency who telework on a full-time basis; and 
(4) the number of employees of the Executive 
agency who are a qualified individual who receives 
an accommodation to telework on a full-time basis 
as a reasonable accommodation under title I of the 
Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 
12111 et seq.). 
SEC. 6. NO RELOCATION INCENTIVES. 
If, pursuant to this Act, the official worksite (as de-
fined in section 531.605 of title 5, Code of Federal Regu-
lations) of an employee changes from the residence of the 
employee to the headquarters of the Executive agency of 
the employee, notwithstanding any other provision of law, 
no such employee shall be paid any relocation incentive. 
SEC. 7. SEVERABILITY. 
If any provision of this Act or the application of such 
provision to any person or circumstance is held to be un-
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constitutional, the remainder of this Act and the applica-
tion of the provision to any other person or circumstance 
shall not be affected thereby. 
SEC. 8. SUPERSESSION. 
This Act shall supersede any other provision of law 
and any provision of a collective bargaining agreement or 
master labor agreement. 
SEC. 9. NO PRIVATE CAUSE OF ACTION. 
Nothing in this Act shall be construed to establish 
a private cause of action, equitable or otherwise, to chal-
lenge any selection, change, or decision made, or action 
taken, under this Act. 
Æ 
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