#a16z Co-founder Pushes for Federal Employees to Return to Office#

a16z co-founder Marc Andreessen recently discussed the US government's Office of Personnel Management (DOGE) focus on getting federal employees back to the office in a podcast. He said the department plans to push for an increase in the number of days federal employees work in the office, noting that federal office buildings in Washington D.C. are currently at an average occupancy rate of only 25%. He pointed out that many federal employees only work in the office one or two days a month, with some even only coming in for two days every two months. Andreessen questioned whether this model meets the requirements of federal employee status, and noted that DOGE has put forward “innovative ideas” to reduce government spending and streamline regulations. He argued that the prevalence of remote work currently presents a challenge to work efficiency and questioned whether the president has the authority to mandate a return to the office for federal employees. Previously, former Trump advisors Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy suggested cutting $2 trillion in spending by reducing government waste, but those plans are currently only at the proposal stage. Reports show that only 6% of federal employees work in the office regularly, with Musk further pointing out that the percentage of employees who work full-time in the office may be as low as 1% after excluding security and maintenance personnel.