ICYMI: Ernst Makes Washington Bureaucrats Squeal
Federal Employees Are Defrauding Taxpayers
WASHINGTON – In case you missed it, Senator Joni Ernst (R-Iowa) is demanding accountability for federal agencies that are defrauding taxpayers by abusing remote work.
Highlights from coverage of Ernst’s work include:
Click here to watch the full interview with Fox Business’ Sean Duffy and Dagen McDowell.
“We have a 25% occupancy rate at these department headquarters. Where are these employees? And what exactly are they doing? I expect accountability in this government. We have taxpayers that are footing the bill for these buildings and these employees. One or the other needs to pay off.”
“Let this be a warning to those federal employees who are frauding the government…We’re coming after ya.”
Fox News Digital: Sen Joni Ernst wants remote government workers investigated: 'We're coming after them'
“Sen. Joni Ernst, R-Iowa, is urging the Inspector General to launch a federal investigation into whether some government agencies are overpaying remote workers who receive a Washington D.C. salary but live in a lower cost of living state — a problem she says was exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic.”
"’It's taxpayer money that they are stealing,’ she said. ‘So, we're gonna figure this out, but I want federal employees to know this is a warning shot to them. They better make it right, or we're coming after them.’"
“Sen. Joni Ernst, R-Iowa, told DailyMail.com that Biden must hold a 'clearance sale on unused office space' - which could help pay off the $32.9 trillion in U.S. national debt.”
“She says that downsizing the amount of space at a number of…agencies would help cut down on waste. In particular, reducing office space at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) headquarters alone would save $30 million taxpayer dollars per year.”
“Are federal work-from-home programs more costly than they appear? Joni Ernst wants answers.”
“The Iowa senator is demanding federal investigators probe the remote work protocols that some federal employees have abused to check out of work while on the taxpayer’s dime. On Tuesday, the Midwestern lawmaker sent letters to inspector generals at each federal agency demanding they examine the efficiency of telework arrangements that remain widespread following the initial outbreak of the novel Wuhan coronavirus.”
Click here to watch the full interview with Fox News’ Harris Faulkner.
“We have seen through COVID – a lot of these federal agencies revert to ‘telework,’ but those employees are not back in their offices.”
“A lot of these folks are ‘working’ from home, and yet we don’t see the productivity level returning to where it was pre-COVID. What are these employees doing? And why do we still maintain the leases on all this unused space?”
“Republican Sen. Joni Ernst of Iowa questioned the Biden administration over its telework policy, citing instances where employees working from home took bubble baths and played golf while on the clock.”
Townhall: Joni Ernst Finds Another Way the Biden Admin Is Throwing Away Millions of Taxpayer Dollars
“U.S. Senator Joni Ernst (R-IA) has found yet another problem with the way President Joe Biden is running the federal government, this time with the endless and essentially unrestricted telework privileges for federal bureaucrats that have had unknown negative impacts on productivity and the ability of federal employees — also known as public servants — to serve the public.”
“Part of the problem Ernst has identified is that, as with most bureaucratic blunders, there's no clear data on how many federal employees are even working in offices and how often they're doing so. To address the issue, learn more about how taxpayer dollars can be saved, and do something to address lagging performance from public servants, Ernst has a plan.”
Follow more recent coverage of Ernst’s work on this issue here:
- Washington Times: Biden admin pushed to sell costly offices left empty by pandemic telework
- Daily Wire: Federal Workers Ignore Biden’s Call To Stop Working From Home — And Some Might Not Be Working At All
- Washington Examiner: Ernst seeks review of federal employee office attendance to crack down on remote work
- The Daily Signal: ‘Golfing on the Taxpayer’s Dime’: GOP Senator Calls on Federal Employees to Return to Office
Ernst also spoke out about this on the Senate floor and at a leadership press conference.
###
