[{"_1":2,"_98":-5,"_99":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,74,86],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":44,"_46":47,"_48":49,"_50":51,"_52":53,"_54":55,"_56":57,"_58":59,"_60":61,"_62":63,"_64":65,"_66":67,"_68":69,"_70":71,"_72":71,"_73":71},"mediaId",6086278,"mediaKeyId","2897793-d40d9a4c3978ffe39d21e5afe134f015","parentId",2897793,"title","Members warn GSA sales could harm local economies, services without careful sequencing","audioSeconds",0,"startMs",5647000,"endMs","viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=2897793-d40d9a4c3978ffe39d21e5afe134f015&start=5647&end=5647","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2897793-d40d9a4c3978ffe39d21e5afe134f015/thumbnail_5647000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6086278/Members-warn-GSA-sales-could-harm-local-economies-services-without-careful-sequencing","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6086278-ba50acd6f8a5eb676e53ff7435da3b2b/orig.mp4?Expires=1770711955&Signature=VZ3yCsy3V8eDJXByuPGm2jaLxD1xhDwFAtJcYSZhASZh~mB6CmZPVjmcYDOQ4ZGZOPyatGnkwI9yL8x7mLPGZDnfzTW-o4H67fyf6LIK46SVo0320v4rtXBOU33kwmZtu~YHgjE9fsuWbSnwr-DYqYOhBFYtZ-It5uIGpa-FO4fArJUA6encre30gKqweXloSAWa6Nk5tbe6eReuP-hoY6toAWywbdf6YMJ7aboh44dyfYy8aviQRpn4atLARmQuxhjNlT-WRaX3BU7YYr8xay3wATOA5dbjeK2h5nB66-VcrPfQonrQZA~HNlh~kE1dC1~fq5wMvwbl-2KI5ToFow__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","U.S. House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform","date","2025-04-08T00:00:00Z","article","Several members used the hearing to spotlight local consequences if federal buildings are sold quickly or without careful sequencing.

Rep. Brown of Ohio objected to a proposed expedited sale of the Anthony J. Celebrezze Federal Building in downtown Cleveland, telling the committee the building houses IRS, Veterans Benefits Administration, Defense Finance and Accounting Services, DHS and the EEOC and warning that selling the building could displace roughly 4,000 federal employees and destabilize downtown services and transit. He said an accelerated three‑year disposal timeline — compared with the usual decade‑long disposition process — risked harming the local economy and public access to services.

Rep. Norton (D‑D.C.) said she opposes relocating federal headquarters out of the National Capital Region and urged orderly disposals that keep employees and services in the region when possible. She pointed to past bipartisan transfers (for example, campus redevelopments such as The Wharf and RFK Stadium) as models for “orderly disposals” and asked witnesses how selling many D.C. buildings at once would affect prices. Witness Ron Kendall said selling into a weak market would yield low proceeds and could even result in public benefit conveyances that return little or nothing to the federal government.

Witnesses also raised statutory and procedural constraints: Rep. Fallon and others noted the McKinney‑Vento Act gives certain homeless assistance providers rights related to federal property conveyances, which some members said should be considered in disposition planning. Members repeatedly pushed witnesses to explain how GSA would weigh economic and social impacts — including potential job losses, transit ridership declines and reduced activity for downtown businesses — against budgetary savings.

GAO and other witnesses recommended sequencing disposals, protecting core properties that support agency missions and allowing data on occupancy and utilization to inform sales timing so markets are not flooded and mission continuity is preserved. Several members requested additional briefings and documentation on planned timelines, local mitigation measures and assurances that relocated services would remain accessible to constituents.

No sales occurred at the hearing; members asked that GSA and agencies provide more detailed plans and timelines and to explain how agency mission needs and community impacts will be evaluated before dispositions proceed.","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","Federal Foreclosure: Reducing the Federal Real Estate Portfolio","oneSentenceSummary","Lawmakers from Washington, Cleveland and other cities pressed witnesses about community impacts of rapid federal building sales, citing potential service disruptions, job losses and depressed sale prices if disposals flood local markets.","taxTitle","Oversight and Reform: House Committee, Standing Committees - House & Senate, Congressional Hearings Compilation, Legislative, Federal","taxId",1835,"location","","headline","shortSummary",{"_33":75,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":76,"_41":77,"_43":78,"_45":79,"_46":80,"_48":81,"_50":82,"_52":83,"_54":55,"_56":57,"_58":84,"_60":61,"_62":63,"_64":85,"_66":67,"_68":69,"_70":71,"_72":71,"_73":71},6086283,"Open the Books tells House panel federal agencies spent billions on high‑end furniture and decor",138,2398000,2536000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=2897793-d40d9a4c3978ffe39d21e5afe134f015&start=2398&end=2536","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2897793-d40d9a4c3978ffe39d21e5afe134f015/thumbnail_2398000.jpg","/articles/6086283/Open-the-Books-tells-House-panel-federal-agencies-spent-billions-on-highend-furniture-and-decor","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6086283-7f6599f273be85e94bb6a23c9ed73669/orig.mp4?Expires=1770711955&Signature=TtPTHC-iMU2edxP3MVq90LbuO4jvn6p42S9o597IXJSqkg7kL70S7VXpqp-6vea4Zr3zWqdViI7Nnoo2LG6bW6R0ugXihHz6s1U4c2p2A9LTEqPFFQHoXHrDbrU4Auzo29NMbD4hU7mo0NSHVqPmS3LSKUufELvhNVaxq9oxddNDWrN3cH5oKRQnl6v7i1Vc8T9XbmN7vzw2qTsKxhhjKr3y~ns~YK6zxm5hEytaIHYmzCtAdGSbiEadAjSFZKk0AdY4hiJBwY7w9-E2pNSwiHlPedbeCezlZfFvlvvo3ccR49UwEXU2AcRyNnyBA4FFikK~52O-UHW6CeyUxUMntA__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","John Hart, chief executive officer of Open the Books, told the DOGE subcommittee that federal furniture spending has been substantial and, in his view, often excessive.

“At Open the Books, we discovered the high cost of decorating and redecorating the administrative state,” Hart said. He testified that, since fiscal 2021, executive agencies reported more than $4,600,000,000 in furniture purchases and cited examples drawn from procurement records, including artwork at State Department embassies and expensive seating at certain offices.

Hart walked members through procurement examples he and his group identified using usaspending.gov, the public federal spending database created under the Federal Funding Accountability and Transparency Act of 2006. He cited the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention purchase of solar‑powered picnic tables (reported in the hearing at roughly $238,000) and other purchases highlighted as illustrative of what Open the Books considers poor procurement choices during a period of remote work and heavy underutilization of office space.

Members from both parties questioned whether the examples were representative and asked about context such as whether purchases included broader outfitting needs, IT or security requirements, or were tied to mission‑critical operations. Hart said his analysis is based on keyword searches and line‑item spending records and that transparency allows the public to scrutinize those results.

Witnesses and members agreed transparency matters. Hart urged broader use of the public spending database and said increased public oversight could deter what his group calls unnecessary spending. He declined to endorse a specific procurement fix in his five‑minute opening statement but argued that access to line‑item spending records allows for more informed congressional oversight and public debate.

The subcommittee did not adopt procurement reforms at the hearing. Several members said they would use Open the Books’ findings to press agencies for procurement explanations and to explore whether purchases complied with existing rules.","Open the Books presented agency‑level spending data showing billions on furniture since 2021 and cited examples — from embassy artwork to solar picnic tables at CDC — that drew sharp questioning from members.",{"_33":87,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":88,"_41":89,"_43":90,"_45":91,"_46":92,"_48":93,"_50":94,"_52":95,"_54":55,"_56":57,"_58":96,"_60":61,"_62":63,"_64":97,"_66":67,"_68":69,"_70":71,"_72":71,"_73":71},6086288,"House panel examines Trump administration push to shrink federal real estate footprint",1093,1155000,2248000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=2897793-d40d9a4c3978ffe39d21e5afe134f015&start=1155&end=2248","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2897793-d40d9a4c3978ffe39d21e5afe134f015/thumbnail_1155000.jpg","/articles/6086288/House-panel-examines-Trump-administration-push-to-shrink-federal-real-estate-footprint","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6086288-4bcfade090b7c9d397a5b4d4bb2da424/orig.mp4?Expires=1770711955&Signature=frrrQ7ryiAtuWO1durkoEZZxPsHo5~VZ82Jx-CJX~~m-Rtdj9iEO2YHFM~ZUPk28TRzZMhnoA9WgakZrJmq47vCuA-ExHQk9eK7hfwobJJ3yAT~bzN~IzSbqkOd5nliI3dEkHDkSBwSux3zMhd1JA7vGwz~U3z0i5dSpW4-sOf2v80L~LmPeR46BU6KkuZtmx9BCny-GRUQOby9L6y8~qKqEORvS7T8fOaZUKRl8Pv6F5p1YwUOZDk58GU0HLN7pGiX0ur16wd3Ax7mGzAWR5fLTynbV1m311KX6Ut0hB6vQCoavyYux8vbKVLPE5oJLewiZohcFcc89INFctNKAcQ__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Chairwoman Greene convened the House Oversight Subcommittee on Delivering on Government Efficiency (DOGE) to review the Trump administration’s efforts to reduce the federal government’s real estate footprint and end costly leases.

The subcommittee heard testimony from David Maroney, a director on GAO’s physical infrastructure team, who said the federal government has held on to too much space and that long-standing data problems have hampered sound decisions. “The pandemic shined a spotlight on these long standing problems and created a unique opportunity to right size the federal government's property holdings,” Maroney said. He also warned that “there is a risk of moving too fast” and urged balancing speedy reductions with deliberate planning so agencies can avoid costly relocations and preserve mission continuity.

The hearing focused on several factual points raised by witnesses and members: GAO has for years identified federal real property management as a high‑risk area; federal agencies and leased space together create roughly half a billion square feet of office space; and the backlog of deferred maintenance cited in the hearing reached $370,000,000,000 in recent reporting. Committee members and witnesses highlighted that many headquarters buildings were significantly underused — GAO’s 2023 analysis found 17 of 24 largest federal agencies used 25% or less of their headquarters capacity.

Supporters of the administration’s approach pointed to rapid early actions: committee testimony and members referenced nearly 700 leases canceled totaling about 7.9 million square feet and an administration estimate of roughly $400,000,000 in savings from those cancellations. Witnesses agreed disposals can generate savings but emphasized sequencing decisions and reliable occupancy data as essential to avoid market disruption and mission impacts. Maroney said agencies will begin collecting utilization data in July under the recent statute and that the new data “will help inform efforts” and should be used to sequence disposals.

Opponents warned of short‑term market effects and operational harms. Several members called the administration’s initial published disposal lists “a fire sale” and noted that selling many high‑value properties at once — particularly into a weak commercial real estate market — could depress sale proceeds and harm local economies. Witness Ron Kendall, a former senior GSA official, urged protecting “core portfolio” buildings that support Federal Buildings Fund performance and recommended disposing of noncore properties only when appropriate and sequenced, not precipitously.

The hearing also covered staffing and implementation questions: members raised concerns about planned GSA workforce reductions and whether GSA had consulted GAO on its disposal plans. Maroney and other witnesses said planning, data collection, and funding for moves and consolidations are necessary components for cost‑effective rightsizing.

The subcommittee did not take legislative or formal committee action during the hearing. Members on both sides emphasized the need for more complete utilization data and careful sequencing before large‑scale disposals proceed.

Looking ahead, GAO testimony and multiple members signaled that utilization reporting required by recent law will arrive this summer and that the subcommittee will use those data to press for clearer plans and sequencing decisions. The witnesses said deliberate planning, protection of mission‑critical properties, and attention to market timing would reduce the risk of unnecessary costs or operational disruptions.","Witnesses and members clashed over the Trump administration’s rapid effort to end leases and sell federally owned buildings, with GAO urging deliberate sequencing and members warning of both wasted taxpayer dollars and potential ‘fire sale’ losses.","actionData","errors"]

Article not found

Members warn GSA sales could harm local economies, services without careful sequencing

Open the Books tells House panel federal agencies spent billions on high‑end furniture and decor

House panel examines Trump administration push to shrink federal real estate footprint