Facilities Location
Progress and Barriers in Selecting Rural Areas and Using Telework Gao ID: GAO-03-1110T September 4, 2003The location of an organization's facilities has far reaching and long-lasting impacts on its operational costs and ability to attract and retain workers. The Rural Development Act of 1972 has required federal agencies to give first priority to locating new offices and other facilities in rural areas. Rural areas generally have lower real estate and labor costs, but agency missions often require locations in urban areas. Telework, also called telecommunicating or flexiplace, is a tool that allows employees to work at home or another work location other than a traditional office. Benefits of telework include reducing traffic congestion, improving the recruitment and retention of workers, and reducing the need for office space. Telework could allow federal workers who live in rural areas to work in or near their homes, at least some of the time. This testimony summarizes and updates work GAO has previously done on the progress in and barriers to the federal government's efforts to locate its operations and workers, when possible, in rural areas.
Even though federal agencies have been required since 1972 to develop policies and procedures to give priority to locating new offices and other facilities in rural areas, this requirement has not been an important factor in location decisions. In September 1990 we reported that there were multiple laws and regulations to guide federal agencies in selecting facility locations, but they did not always provide for consideration of the best financial interest of the government as a factor in the decision-making process. In July 2001 we reported that many agencies had not issued policies and procedures to give rural areas priority when considering the location of new facilities. Only about 12 percent of federal workers were located in nonmetropolitan statistical areas, a percentage that remained unchanged from 1989 to 2000. Agencies said the need to be near clients, primarily in urban areas, dictated the location of most operations in urban areas. In spite of not having policies to give priority to rural areas, agencies sometimes locate their operations in rural areas to serve clients in those areas. Also, some functions, such as research and development, supply and storage, automated data processing, and finance and accounting, can be located in rural areas. Rural areas can offer lower real estate costs, improved security, reduced parking and traffic congestion problems, and better access to major transportation arteries. Potential barriers to locating in rural areas include the lack of public transportation, lack of available labor, location far from some other agency facilities, and sometimes insufficient infrastructure for high-speed telecommunications. In our July 2001 report, we made several recommendations to the General Services Administration and Congress to improve location decisionmaking. Congress and the General Services Administration subsequently took action to stress the requirements of the Rural Development Act. Congress has promoted telework in several ways, including authorizing of telework centers in the Washington, D.C., area, requiring agencies to establish a policy under which employees may participate in telecommuting to the maximum extent possible, and encouraging the development of high-speed Internet access in rural areas. However, only about 5 percent of the federal workforce is currently teleworking. In our July 2003 report, we recommended that the General Services Administration and the Office of Personnel Management improve their coordination and provide agencies with more consistent guidance on telework and assist agencies in implementing key practices we identified. The agencies generally agreed with our recommendations and committed to implement them. In addition, the Congressional Research Service reported in July 2003 that about 85 percent of U.S. households have broadband access, although rural, minority, low-income, inner city, tribal, and U.S. territory consumers are particularly vulnerable to not receiving this service. Technological barriers, such as the lack of access to high-speed Internet connections, could have a detrimental effect on the ability of some federal workers in rural areas to take advantage of telework.
GAO-03-1110T, Facilities Location: Progress and Barriers in Selecting Rural Areas and Using Telework
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Testimony:
Before the Committee on Small Business, House of Representatives:
United States General Accounting Office:
GAO:
For Release on Delivery Expected at 9:30 a.m. EST:
Thursday, September 4, 2003:
Facilities Location:
Progress and Barriers in Selecting Rural Areas and Using Telework:
Statement of Bernard L. Ungar Director, Physical Infrastructure Issues:
GAO-03-1110T:
GAO Highlights:
Highlights of GAO-03-1110T, a testimony to Committee on Small
Business, House of Representatives
Why GAO Did This Study:
The location of an organization‘s facilities has far reaching and
long-lasting impacts on its operational costs and ability to attract
and retain workers. The Rural Development Act of 1972 has required
federal agencies to give first priority to locating new offices and
other facilities in rural areas. Rural areas generally have lower real
estate and labor costs, but agency missions often require locations in
urban areas.
Telework, also called telecommunicating or flexiplace, is a tool that
allows employees to work at home or another work location other than a
traditional office. Benefits of telework include reducing traffic
congestion, improving the recruitment and retention of workers, and
reducing the need for office space. Telework could allow federal
workers who live in rural areas to work in or near their homes, at
least some of the time.
This testimony summarizes and updates work GAO has previously done on
the progress in and barriers to the federal government‘s efforts to
locate its operations and workers, when possible, in rural areas.
What GAO Found:
Even though federal agencies have been required since 1972 to develop
policies and procedures to give priority to locating new offices and
other facilities in rural areas, this requirement has not been an
important factor in location decisions. In September 1990 we reported
that there were multiple laws and regulations to guide federal
agencies in selecting facility locations, but they did not always
provide for consideration of the best financial interest of the
government as a factor in the decision-making process. In July 2001 we
reported that many agencies had not issued policies and procedures to
give rural areas priority when considering the location of new
facilities. Only about 12 percent of federal workers were located in
nonmetropolitan statistical areas, a percentage that remained
unchanged from 1989 to 2000. Agencies said the need to be near
clients, primarily in urban areas, dictated the location of most
operations in urban areas. In spite of not having policies to give
priority to rural areas, agencies sometimes locate their operations in
rural areas to serve clients in those areas. Also, some functions,
such as research and development, supply and storage, automated data
processing, and finance and accounting, can be located in rural areas.
Rural areas can offer lower real estate costs, improved security,
reduced parking and traffic congestion problems, and better access to
major transportation arteries. Potential barriers to locating in rural
areas include the lack of public transportation, lack of available
labor, location far from some other agency facilities, and sometimes
insufficient infrastructure for high-speed telecommunications. In our
July 2001 report, we made several recommendations to the General
Services Administration and Congress to improve location
decisionmaking. Congress and the General Services Administration
subsequently took action to stress the requirements of the Rural
Development Act.
Congress has promoted telework in several ways, including authorizing
of telework centers in the Washington, D.C., area, requiring agencies
to establish a policy under which employees may participate in
telecommuting to the maximum extent possible, and encouraging the
development of high-speed Internet access in rural areas. However,
only about 5 percent of the federal workforce is currently
teleworking. In our July 2003 report, we recommended that the General
Services Administration and the Office of Personnel Management improve
their coordination and provide agencies with more consistent guidance
on telework and assist agencies in implementing key practices we
identified. The agencies generally agreed with our recommendations and
committed to implement them. In addition, the Congressional Research
Service reported in July 2003 that about 85 percent of U.S. households
have broadband access, although rural, minority, low-income, inner
city, tribal, and U.S. territory consumers are particularly vulnerable
to not receiving this service. Technological barriers, such as the
lack of access to high-speed Internet connections, could have a
detrimental effect on the ability of some federal workers in rural
areas to take advantage of telework.
www.gao.gov/cgi-bin/getrpt?GAO-03-1110T.
To view the full product, including the scope and methodology, click
on the link above. For more information, contact Bernard Ungar at
ungarb@gao.gov.
[End of section]
Mr. Chairman and Members of the Committee:
We are pleased to be here to testify on federal agencies' efforts to
consider locating facilities in rural areas, as required by the Rural
Development Act of 1972 (RDA), and to use telework[Footnote 1] as a way
of allowing workers to live in rural areas. My testimony is based on
our September 1990 and July 2001 reports on facilities
location[Footnote 2] and subsequent actions by the General Services
Administration (GSA) to address our recommendations; selected agencies'
responses to a requirement in a fiscal year 2002 appropriations act
directing Inspectors General to report on policies and procedures their
agencies have to give first priority to the location of facilities in
rural areas; and our July 2003 report on telework[Footnote 3] and other
GSA, Office of Personnel Management (OPM), and Congressional Research
Service (CRS) reports on telework. My testimony focuses on the progress
federal agencies have made and barriers they face in locating federal
buildings, when possible, in rural areas and making telework available
to federal workers who live in rural areas.
Summary:
Although RDA has required federal agencies to establish policies and
procedures giving first priority to the location of new offices and
other facilities in rural areas since 1972, RDA has not been an
important factor in federal location decisions. Many agencies have not
issued policies and procedures regarding RDA, and there is little
evidence that agencies consider RDA's requirements when locating new
federal facilities. Agency officials said requirements to be near
clients in urban areas to accomplish their missions dictated the
location of most operations in urban areas. However, some agencies
locate operations in rural areas to serve rural populations, and
functions such as research and development, supply and storage,
automated data processing, and finance and accounting can often be
located in rural areas. Benefits of rural areas can include improved
security, reduced parking and traffic congestion problems, and better
access to major transportation arteries. Potential barriers to locating
in rural areas include the lack of public transportation, location far
from some other agency facilities, the lack of available labor, and
insufficient infrastructure for high-speed telecommunications. In
2000, about 12 percent of federal workers were located in
nonmetropolitan statistical areas.
In 2002, about 5 percent of the federal workforce was teleworking. In
2003, we assessed the federal government's progress in implementing
telework programs and found that, while recently improved, OPM and GSA
have not always coordinated their efforts; as a result, agencies have
not always received consistent, unambiguous support and guidance
related to telework. We identified 25 key practices, including 5
relating to technology (such as providing technical support for
teleworkers), that federal agencies should implement in developing
telework programs. We found that the agencies we reviewed had fully
implemented 7 of the 25 practices but had generally implemented the 5
practices relating to technology. CRS reported in July 2003[Footnote 4]
that about 85 percent of U.S. households have access to high-speed
Internet connections, but rural, minority, low-income, inner city,
tribal, and U.S. territory consumers are particularly vulnerable to not
receiving this service. Technological barriers, including the lack of
access to high-speed Internet connections, could have a detrimental
effect on the ability of some federal workers in rural areas to take
advantage of telework.
In our July 2001 report on federal location policies, we suggested that
Congress consider requiring agencies to consider real estate, labor,
and other costs, and applicable local incentives when making location
decisions and to amend RDA to clarify the definition of "rural area."
We made similar recommendations to GSA and also recommended that GSA
require agencies to provide a written statement that they complied with
RDA and to justify their decision if they did not select a rural area.
Subsequent to our report, Congress has required agency inspectors
general to report on what policies and procedures are in place at their
agencies to comply with RDA, and GSA has issued additional guidance and
policies on RDA. In our July 2003 report on telework efforts, we
recommended that GSA and OPM improve coordination of their efforts to
provide agencies with enhanced guidance on telework and to assist
agencies in implementing key practices we identified. GSA and OPM
generally agreed with our recommendations and committed to take steps
towards their implementation.
The Rural Development Act and Other Federal Location Policies:
When considering areas in which to locate, RDA directs the heads of all
executive departments and agencies of the government to establish and
maintain departmental policies and procedures giving first priority to
the location of new offices and other facilities in rural areas. Any
move by an agency to new office space in another location would be
considered a new office or facility covered by RDA.
Two primary executive orders on federal facility location decisions are
Executive Order 12072, Federal Space Management, dated August 16, 1978;
and Executive Order 13006, Locating Federal Facilities on Historic
Properties, dated May 21, 1996. Executive Order 12072 specifies that
when the agency mission and program requirements call for federal
facilities to be located in urban areas, agencies must give first
consideration to locating in a central business area and adjacent areas
of similar character. Executive Order 13006 requires the federal
government to utilize and maintain, wherever operationally appropriate
and economically prudent, historic properties and districts, especially
those located in the central business area.
Agencies Generally Locate in Urban Areas and Lack Policies and
Procedures for Considering RDA:
In 1990, we reviewed whether federal agencies give rural areas first
priority in location decisions as required by RDA and whether any
changes in federal location policies were warranted. We reported that
RDA had not been an important factor in federal facility location
decisions. In fiscal year 1989, about 12 percent of federal civilian
workers were located in nonmetropolitan statistical areas. Agency
officials attributed mission requirements, the need to be in areas
where the populations they serve are located, political considerations,
and budget pressures as reasons why urban areas received more
facilities than rural areas. Those agencies that did locate in rural
areas said it was more because they served rural populations than
because they were following the requirements of RDA.
We also reported that a growing number of private sector corporations
were moving to suburban and rural settings to take advantage of
incentives offered by localities to attract jobs and the ability to
separate functions resulting from changes in telecommunications
technology. We concluded that there were multiple laws and regulations
guiding federal agencies in selecting facility locations, but they do
not always provide for consideration of the best financial interest of
the government as a factor in the decision-making process. We
recommended that GSA develop a more consistent and cost-conscious
governmentwide location policy that would require agencies, in meeting
their needs, to maximize competition and select sites that offer the
best overall value considering such factors as real estate and labor
costs.
In 2001, we performed follow-up work on our 1990 report including
identifying what functions lend themselves to being located in rural
areas. We reported that since our 1990 study, federal agencies
continued to locate for the most part in higher cost, urban areas. The
percentage of federal employees located in nonmetropolitan statistical
areas in 2000 remained virtually unchanged from 1989, at about 12
percent. Eight of the 13 cabinet agencies we surveyed had no formal RDA
policy, and there was little evidence that agencies considered RDA's
requirements when locating new federal facilities. Further, GSA had not
developed a cost-conscious, governmentwide location policy as we
recommended in 1990 and the definition of rural used in RDA was
unclear.
We reported in 2001 that agencies chose urban areas for most (72
percent) of the 115 federal sites acquired from fiscal year 1998
through fiscal year 2000. Agencies said they selected urban areas
primarily because of the need to be near agency clients and related
government and private sector facilities to accomplish their missions.
The agencies that selected rural areas said they did so because of
lower real estate costs. Agencies that relocated operations tended to
relocate within the same areas where they were originally located,
which were mainly urban areas; newly established locations were almost
equally divided between urban and rural areas. Private sector companies
surveyed said they select urban areas over rural areas largely because
of the need to be near a skilled labor force.
Agencies said the benefits of locating in urban areas were efficiency
in agency performance as a result of the ability to share existing
facilities, close proximity to other agency facilities and employees,
and accessibility to public transportation. Agencies that chose rural
sites said that benefits included close proximity to agency support
facilities, improved building and data security, and better access to
major transportation arteries, such as interstate highways. Barriers
reported for urban sites included the lack of building security and
expansion space. For rural areas, barriers included the lack of public
transportation, location far from other agency facilities, and
insufficient infrastructure for high-speed telecommunications.
The functions that were located predominantly at urban sites during
1998 through 2000 were loans/grants/benefits administration
processing, inspection and auditing, and health and medical services.
The functions that were located predominantly in rural areas in that
period were research and development, supply and storage, automated
data processing, and finance and accounting. Some functions, such as
law enforcement, were placed in both urban and rural areas, although
this particular function was located more often at urban sites.
For our 2001 study, we contracted with a private sector consultant,
John D. Dorchester, Jr., of The Dorchester Group, L.L.C., to assist us
in a number of tasks. One task was to identify functions the private
sector might locate in rural areas. The consultant identified the
following functions:[Footnote 5]
* Accounting:
* Account representative:
* Appraisal/market research:
* Clerical/secretarial:
* Data processing:
* Distribution/warehousing:
* Education/training:
* Enforcement and quality control:
* Field service operations:
* Human resources and social services:
* Information technologies services:
* Legal support:
* Logistical support:
* Manufacturing and assembly offices:
* Operations centers:
* Printing and publishing:
* Records archiving:
* Repairs and servicing:
* Scientific studies and research and development:
* Technical functions and support:
* Telemarketing, order processing, and communications:
We also asked our consultant to identify the benefits and challenges
associated with rural areas for selected functions. (See table 1.):
Table 1: Benefits and Challenges Associated With Rural Areas for Nine
Functions:
Function: Accounting; Benefits: Lower wages and operating costs;
Challenges: Data security and quality control.
Function: Data processing; Benefits: Reduced costs of office and labor;
Challenges: Needs skills more often found in metropolitan areas.
Function: Distribution and warehousing; Benefits: Savings on labor and
real estate; Challenges: Needs good transportation links.
Function: Education and training; Benefits: Fewer distractions and
recreation opportunities; Challenges: None identified.
Function: Enforcement/quality control; Benefits: None identified;
Challenges: Needs good regional access.
Function: Printing and publishing; Benefits: None identified;
Challenges: Needs good transportation links.
Function: Records archiving; Benefits: Lower costs for real estate and
wages; Challenges: Limited access to records.
Function: Scientific studies/research and development; Benefits:
Better security; in some cases, access to universities; Challenges:
Specialized employees may have to be recruited nationally.
Function: Telemarketing, order processing, communications; Benefits:
Operating cost efficiencies; Challenges: Sufficient and sustainable
labor pool.
Source: The Dorchester Group, L.L.C., Office Location Considerations of
Large U.S. Corporations: U.S. Government Potentials (Scottsdale, AZ:
Mar. 31, 2001).
[End of table]
Our July 2001 report suggested that Congress consider enacting
legislation to (1) require agencies to consider real estate, labor, and
other operational costs and local incentives when making a location
decision; and (2) clarify the meaning of "rural area" in RDA. We also
recommended that GSA revise its guidance to agencies to require
agencies making location decisions to consider real estate, labor, and
other costs and local incentives. In addition, we recommended that GSA
require agencies subject to its authority to provide a written
statement that they had given first priority to locating in a rural
area and to justify their decision if they did not select a rural area.
We also recommended that GSA define rural area until Congress amended
RDA to define the term. Subsequent to our report, GSA took action on
our recommendations; actions which are described in greater detail
below.
Policies to Consider RDA Have Been Strengthened but Procedures are
Still Lacking:
The Fiscal Year 2002 Treasury and General Government Appropriations
Act, Public Law 107-67, required the inspectors general (IG) of
departments and agencies to submit to the appropriations committees a
report detailing what policies and procedures are in place requiring
them to give first priority to the location of new offices and other
facilities in rural areas, as directed by RDA. These reports were due
in May 2002. A similar requirement was included in the Consolidated
Appropriations Resolution for Fiscal Year 2003, Public Law 108-7.
However, because the IGs had until August 20, 2003, to report on this,
we did not have the opportunity to review those reports required by
Public Law 108-7 for this testimony.
GSA's May 2, 2002, response to the Public Law 107-67 requirement
described the policies that GSA had in place to give first priority to
the location of new offices and other facilities in rural areas, as
well as what actions GSA had taken in response to our July 2001
recommendations. GSA took the following actions:
* The Federal Management Regulation, section 102-83.30, was revised to
require federal agencies to also consider real estate, labor, and other
operational costs and applicable incentives in addition to mission and
program requirements when locating space, effective December 13, 2002.
* The Public Buildings Service Customer Guide to Real Property was
revised to require agencies to provide GSA with a written statement
affirming that they have given first priority to locating in a rural
area as required by RDA when requesting space from GSA.
* The Federal Management Regulation, section 102-83.55, effective
December 13, 2002, was revised to define "rural area" as a city, town,
or unincorporated area that has a population of 50,000 inhabitants or
fewer, other than an urban area immediately adjacent to a city, town,
or unincorporated area that has a population in excess of 50,000
inhabitants.[Footnote 6]
* GSA published a recommendation in the Federal Register on January 21,
2003, that federal agencies with their own statutory authority to
acquire real property use the above definition of rural area and
demonstrate compliance with RDA by including a written statement in
their files affirming that they have given first priority to the
location of new offices and other federal facilities in rural areas.
These actions responded to all of our July 2001 recommendations with
the exception of one. We had recommended that GSA require agencies,
when selecting a new facility location, to provide a written statement
that they had given first priority to locating in a rural area. If a
rural area was not selected, agencies were to provide a justification
for the decision. GSA's new guidance does not require agencies not
selecting a rural area to justify their decision.
We also reviewed the IG reports detailing the policies and procedures
in place regarding giving first priority to rural areas as required by
Public Law 107-67 for the Departments of Energy, the Interior, Justice,
Transportation, and Veterans Affairs. According to GSA data,[Footnote
7] these agencies, along with the Department of Defense and the United
States Postal Service, have the largest amount of owned and leased
building square footage in the federal government. We excluded sites
acquired by the Defense Department because it has so much vacant space
available at its bases nationally that it has no choice but to give
priority consideration to its existing vacant space when locating new
or existing operations. We excluded Postal Service sites because the
Postal Service advised us it had little or no discretion in deciding
where to locate most of its facilities in that they needed to be in
specific locations to serve customers or near airports. In addition,
the Postal Service is exempt from federal laws relating to contracts
and property and it has authority to acquire space independently of
GSA.
The IG reports for the five departments said that only two departments
had written policies regarding RDA, and only one of these two had
issued procedures. However, the departments said that in spite of not
having written policies or procedures, they had located many of their
facilities in rural areas.
The Energy IG reported that Energy had no specific policies or
procedures, but it reported that a preponderance of the department's
activities are located in remote parts of the United States.
The Interior IG reported that Department of the Interior and the U.S.
Geological Survey, 1 of 35 bureaus and offices in the Department of the
Interior, had policies regarding RDA. However, neither the department
nor any of the bureaus and offices had procedures to ensure compliance
with the policies. The IG reported that of the 270 locations
established in the last 5 years, 197 (73 percent) were located in rural
areas. The IG said that the decision to place facilities in rural areas
was influenced by Interior's mission rather than by the requirements of
RDA.
The Justice IG said Justice had no specific policy or procedures on
RDA, but department bureaus, offices, boards, and divisions were
instructed to implement all applicable federal regulations. The Justice
IG cited the GSA regulation requiring agencies to give first priority
to the location of new offices and other facilities in rural areas. The
IG said it relies upon GSA for most of its space needs, and GSA is
responsible for compliance with RDA. Further, the IG said the locations
of its facilities are ultimately determined by mission and operational
requirements, which predominantly require locations in major
metropolitan areas. For example, U.S. Attorneys Offices and the U.S.
Marshals Service need to be located near federal courthouses to
accomplish their missions. The Bureau of Prisons is located in rural
areas to decrease land costs and increase security. The Immigration and
Naturalization Service[Footnote 8] is stationed in both urban and rural
areas along the borders of the United States. The Federal Bureau of
Investigation and the Drug Enforcement Administration are law
enforcement agencies, and their missions and operational requirements
determine the location of facilities. The IG also pointed out that the
Federal Bureau of Investigation's data center is located in a rural
part of West Virginia.
The Department of Transportation policy on RDA was the most complete of
the agencies we reviewed in that Transportation has procedures that
require a discussion of the considerations given to rural areas and
requires an explanation if a rural location is not selected. However,
the Transportation IG said the department does not provide any guidance
on decision criteria or factors to be considered, such as cost-benefit
analysis, access to public transportation, or effects of relocation on
the workforce. Of 33 site location decisions made from October 1997
through February 2002, the Transportation IG found that 24 had no
documentation in the files to indicate compliance with RDA.
According to the Veterans Affairs IG, the department had no written
policy or procedures regarding RDA. The IG said priority is given to
locating new Veterans Health Administration medical care facilities in
locations convenient to veteran patients and to collocating Veterans
Benefits Administration regional offices on Veterans Affairs medical
center grounds.
Federal Telework Efforts are Improving but Limited:
Telework could be used to allow federal workers who live in rural areas
to work in or near their homes, at least on a part-time basis. For over
a decade, telework, also called telecommuting or flexiplace, has gained
popularity because it offers the potential to benefit employers,
including the federal government, by reducing traffic congestion and
pollution, improving the recruitment and retention of employees,
increasing productivity, and reducing the need for office space.
Employees can benefit from reduced commuting time; lower costs for
transportation, parking, food, and clothing; and a better balance of
work and family demands, which could improve morale and quality of
life. Other benefits might include removing barriers for those with
disabilities who want to be part of the work force and helping agencies
maintain continuity of operations in emergency operations.
Congress has enacted legislation that has promoted the use of telework
in several ways, including authorizing GSA telework centers, requiring
each agency to consider using alternate workplace arrangements when
considering whether to acquire space for use by employees, requiring
each agency to establish a policy under which eligible employees may
participate in telecommuting to the maximum extent possible, and
encouraging the deployment of high-speed Internet access in rural
areas. Congress has provided both GSA and OPM with lead roles and
shared responsibilities for advancing telework in the federal
government.
Under the telework centers program, GSA supports 15 centers located in
the Washington, D.C., metropolitan area. These centers make alternative
office environments available to federal employees to perform their
work at a site closer to their homes.
According to a recent OPM report,[Footnote 9] federal agencies reported
in November 2002 that about 90,000 employees, or about 5 percent of the
workforce, were teleworking, compared with about 74,500, or 4.2
percent, reported in 2001. OPM reported that about 625,300 employees,
or 35 percent of the federal workforce, were eligible to telework in
2002, and 68.5 percent of the total eligible federal workforce had been
offered the opportunity to telework. In 2002, 14.4 percent of eligible
employees teleworked. OPM reported that the rise in the number of
teleworkers was due to a number of factors, including intensified
efforts by agencies to encourage telework and a decline in management
resistance to telework after training and education efforts. OPM did
not report on the number of federal workers who resided in rural areas
who were able to telework. We did not verify the accuracy of the OPM
data.
OPM reported a change in the ranking of major barriers to telework from
an April 2001 survey of agencies to the November 2002 survey. As shown
in table 2, security became the main barrier in 2002, replacing
management resistance, which had been the main barrier in 2001.
Table 2: Ranking of Major Barriers to Telework:
April 2001 Barriers: Management resistance; November 2002 Barriers:
Data security.
April 2001 Barriers: Funding; November 2002 Barriers: Information
technology issues.
April 2001 Barriers: Employee resistance/concerns; November 2002
Barriers: Funding.
April 2001 Barriers: Information technology issues; November 2002
Barriers: Employee resistance/concerns.
April 2001 Barriers: Data security; November 2002 Barriers: Management
resistance.
Source: OPM.
[End of table]
In July 2003 we reported on the federal government's progress in
implementing telework programs. We found that although OPM and GSA
offer services and resources to encourage telework in the government,
they have not fully coordinated their efforts and have had difficulty
in resolving their conflicting views on telework-related matters. As a
result, agencies have not always received consistent, inclusive,
unambiguous support and guidance related to telework. We recommended
that OPM and GSA improve the coordination of their efforts to provide
federal agencies with enhanced support and guidance related to telework
and to assist agencies in implementing 25 key practices we identified.
After we discussed the issues created by the lack of coordination
between GSA and OPM, a GSA official indicated that GSA and OPM would
commit to improved coordination. The 25 key practices we identified by
reviewing telework-related literature and guidelines that federal
agencies should implement in developing telework programs are listed in
table 3.
Table 3: Key Telework Practices for Implementing Successful Federal
Telework Programs:
Program: Program planning; Telework practices: * Designate a telework
coordinator; * Establish a cross-functional project team, including,
for example, information technology (IT), union representatives, and
other stakeholders; * Establish measurable telework program goals; *
Develop an implementation plan for the telework program; * Develop a
business case for implementing a telework program; * Provide funding to
meet the needs of the telework program; * Establish a pilot program.
Program: Telework policy; Telework practices: * Establish an agencywide
telework policy; * Establish eligibility criteria to ensure that
teleworkers are selected on an equitable basis using such criteria as
suitability of tasks and employee performance; * Establish policies or
requirements to facilitate communication among teleworkers, managers,
and coworkers; * Develop a telework agreement for use between
teleworkers and their managers; * Develop guidelines on workplace
health and safety issues to ensure that teleworkers have safe and
adequate places to work off-site.
Program: Performance management; Telework practices: * Ensure that the
same performance standards, derived from a modern, effective, credible,
and validated performance system, are used to evaluate both teleworkers
and nonteleworkers; * Establish guidelines to minimize adverse impact
on nonteleworkers before employees begin working at alternate work
sites.
Program: Managerial support; Telework practices: * Obtain support from
top management for a telework program; * Address managerial resistance
to telework.
Program: Training and publicizing; Telework practices: * Train all
involved, including, at a minimum, managers and teleworkers; * Inform
workforce about the telework program.
Program: Technology; Telework practices: * Conduct assessment of
teleworker and organization technology needs; * Develop guidelines
about whether the organization or employee will provide necessary
technology, equipment, and supplies for telework; * Provide technical
support for teleworkers; * Address access and security issues related
to telework; * Establish standards for equipment in the telework
environment.
Program: Program evaluation; Telework practices: * Establish processes,
procedures, and/or a tracking system to collect data to evaluate the
telework program; * Identify problems and/or issues with the telework
program and make appropriate adjustments.
Source: GAO analysis of telework-related literature and guidelines.
[End of table]
We found that the four agencies we reviewed for that report, the
Departments of Education and Veterans Affairs, GSA, and OPM, had
implemented 7 of the 25 practices and had generally implemented the 5
practices relating to technology. Nevertheless, technological issues,
such as not being able to access to high-speed Internet connections,
could have a detrimental effect on the ability of some federal workers
in rural areas to take advantage of telework.
CRS reported this year on the ability of users to take advantage of
high-speed, or broadband, Internet access. CRS reported that although
many, but not all, offices and businesses now have Internet broadband
access, a remaining challenge is providing broadband over "the last
mile" to consumers in their homes. Congress has required the Federal
Communications Commission (FCC) to determine whether advanced
telecommunications capability is being deployed to all Americans in a
reasonable and timely fashion and, if not, to take immediate action to
accelerate deployment by removing barriers to infrastructure investment
and by promoting competition in the telecommunications market.[Footnote
10]
In August 2000, FCC concluded that advanced telecommunications
capability was being deployed in a reasonable and timely fashion
overall, although rural, minority, low-income, inner city, tribal, and
U.S. territory consumers were particularly vulnerable to not receiving
service in a timely fashion. In February 2002, FCC concluded that the
deployment of advanced telecommunications capability to all Americans
was reasonable and timely and investment in infrastructure for most
markets remained strong, even though the pace of investment trends had
slowed. According to CRS, about 85 percent of households have access to
broadband.
CRS also reported that the President's Council of Advisors on Science
and Technology concluded in December 2002 that although government
should not intervene in the telecommunications marketplace, it should
apply existing policies and promote government broadband applications
and telework, among other actions. CRS also noted that much broadband
legislation introduced in the 107th Congress sought to provide tax
credits, grants, and/or loans for broadband deployment, primarily in
rural and/or low income areas. It also noted that Public Law 107-171,
the Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002, authorized a loan
and loan guarantee program to entities for facilities and equipment
providing broadband service in eligible rural communities. The purpose
of this legislation is to accelerate broadband deployment in rural
areas.
Mr. Chairman, this concludes my prepared statement. I would be happy to
respond to any questions you or other Members of the Committee may have
at this time.
Contacts and Acknowledgments:
For further information on this testimony, please contact Bernard L.
Ungar on (202) 512-2834 or at ungarb@gao.gov. Key contributions to this
testimony were made by John Baldwin, Frederick Lyles, Susan Michal-
Smith, and Bill Dowdal.
FOOTNOTES
[1] Telework, also referred to as telecommunicating or flexiplace, is
work that is performed at an employee's home or work location other
than a traditional office.
[2] U.S. General Accounting Office, Facilities Location Policy: GSA
Should Propose a More Consistent and Businesslike Approach, GAO/
GGD-90-109 (Washington, D.C.: Sept. 28, 1990); and U.S. General
Accounting Office, Facilities Location: Agencies Should Pay More
Attention to Costs and Rural Development Act, GAO-01-805 (Washington,
D.C.: July 31, 2001).
[3] U.S. General Accounting Office, Human Capital: Further Guidance,
Assistance, and Coordination Can Improve Federal Telework Efforts,
GAO-03-679 (Washington, D.C.: July 18, 2003).
[4] Congressional Research Service, The Library of Congress, Broadband
Internet Access: Background and Issues (Washington, D.C.: Updated July
1, 2003).
[5] The Dorchester Group, LLC.,Office Location Considerations of Large
U.S. Corporations: U.S. Government Potentials (Scottsdale, AZ: Mar. 31,
2001).
[6] We noted in our 2001 report that the definition of "rural area" in
RDA was unclear. In 2002, the RDA definition was repealed in its
entirety, and currently there is no statutory definition of rural area
in RDA. In 1972, RDA defined rural as any area in a city or town with a
population less than 10,000 inhabitants.
[7] U.S. General Services Administration, Federal Real Property
Profile, as of September 30, 2002 (Washington, D.C., 2002).
[8] The Justice Inspector General report is dated July 30, 2002. Since
the report was issued, part of the Immigration and Naturalization
Service is now in the Department of Homeland Security.
[9] U.S. Office of Personnel Management, Report to the Congress: The
Status of Telework in the Federal Government (Washington, D.C.: Jan.
2003).
[10] 47 U.S.C. 157 note.
