House Oversight Committee Takes Aim at Official Time, Considers Other Troubling Federal Employee Related Bills

IFPTE weighed in this week on several bills impacting federal workers and their Unions that were considered by the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee.  The series of bills, most sponsored by Republican House lawmakers, included a bill targeting official time for representational purposes and a bill to extend probationary periods for most federal workers to two years.

IFPTE also weighed in on a bill to give the Trump Administration more resources to train federal managers and a bill to provide lump sum relocation benefits for federal workers, both of which were improved with bipartisan input. While all of these bills ultimately passed in Committee, including the official time bill that passed on a party-line vote, IFPTE did send a letter to committee members urging them to oppose some of the bills, while expressing concerns with others.  The legislation threatening official time and extending one-year probationary periods to two years is unlikely to pass the Senate.  

See IFPTE’s full letter.