Attorneys for Federal Employees — Nationwide

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Today at a Glance

• SSA field offices: AFGE warns that a new federal building occupancy law could wrongly target busy but understaffed Social Security offices for closure.
• MSPB: Trump nominated sitting member James Woodruff as permanent chairman, filling a vacancy open for 15 months.
• VA doctors: Bipartisan lawmakers blasted VA Secretary Collins for sitting on a nine-month-old law authorizing higher physician pay while three clinics close for lack of doctors.

Top Stories:

1.  SSA Union: Building Occupancy Law Could Shutter Busy, Understaffed Field Offices

Source: Government Executive — April 11, 2026

TL;DR: The 2024 USE IT Act requires federal agencies to show at least 60% building occupancy or face GSA action to shrink their footprint. SSA has rolled out badge-in/badge-out tracking to comply. AFGE Council 220 President Jessica LaPointe warned that basing property decisions solely on employee headcount could wrongly target busy but understaffed offices for closure -- offices that are low on staff, not low on demand. Some SSA field offices have been temporarily shuttered for over a year due to staffing shortages alone.

For federal employees, this means:

•  SSA field office employees should expect badge-in/badge-out tracking to continue as GSA collects occupancy data.
• Offices just below the 60% threshold are most at risk — and most of SSA's buildings are only a few employees short.
• Virtual reassignments don't show up in occupancy data, so 2,000 HQ-based employees helping field offices remotely aren't counted where the work happens.

Legal Insight:
The USE IT Act (P.L. 118-152) empowers GSA to consolidate or dispose of underutilized space. But the statute measures employee occupancy — not public foot traffic or workload demand. For SSA, where 43 million people visit field offices annually, a purely headcount-based metric could produce misleading results. Employees in offices flagged for consolidation should document workload and public-facing demand in case the decision is challenged.

2. Trump Nominates Woodruff as Permanent MSPB Chairman

Source: Federal News Network — April 15, 2026

TL;DR: President Trump nominated sitting MSPB member James Woodruff to be permanent chairman of the board, which has been without a confirmed leader for 15 months. Woodruff was confirmed as a member by the Senate in October and still must go through a separate confirmation process for the chairman role.  Acting Chairman Henry Kerner has held the position since Trump fired former Chair Cathy Harris in early 2025. The board currently has two members — Kerner and Woodruff — and a functioning quorum.

For federal employees, this means:

• The board can issue final decisions on petitions for review, which had been frozen during the quorum gap.
• A confirmed chairman sets the board's docket priorities — expect cases involving RIF appeals, Schedule Policy/Career conversions, and probationary terminations to be front of the line.
• OPM's pending proposals to strip MSPB of jurisdiction over RIF, suitability, and probationary appeals are still in proposed-rule status; a confirmed chairman could influence whether the board fights to retain that authority.

Legal Insight:
Under 5 U.S.C. § 1201, the MSPB chairman serves as chief executive and administrative officer of the board. The chairman designation is a separate presidential nomination requiring Senate confirmation under § 1202. Federal employees with petitions for review pending before the board should expect the backlog to begin moving — the board had over 11,000 appeals filed in 2025 alone, roughly double a typical full-year caseload.

3. VA Sitting on Doctor Pay Authority While Clinics Close for Lack of Staff

Source: Government Executive — April 9, 2026

TL;DR: The Dole Act, signed by President Biden before leaving office, authorized VA to issue 300 waivers to the $400,000 physician salary cap to recruit or retain staff in critical roles — effective July 2025. Nine months later, VA has not issued a single waiver. Sen. Blumenthal (D-Conn.) and Rep. Takano (D-Calif.) led a letter blasting Secretary Collins, noting he asked Congress for the very authority he already has. VA has announced the closure of three clinics in 2026 — in Lincoln City, OR, Schenectady, NY, and McMinnville, TN — all due to staffing shortages. 

For federal employees, this means:

• VA physicians at the $400,000 cap remain unable to receive competitive pay while the waivers sit unused.
• Three clinic closures signal that the physician retention crisis is reaching the point of service elimination, not just degraded access.
• Bipartisan pressure may force VA to move, but implementation could still take months given unresolved internal policy questions.

Legal Insight:
Section 142 of P.L. 118-210 (the Dole Act) authorizes — but does not require — VA to grant pay cap waivers. Congress gave VA 180 days to implement. That window closed in January 2026. While the statute is permissive, the legislative history and bipartisan oversight letters make clear that Congress views the delay as inconsistent with the law's purpose. VA employees affected by clinic closures should preserve any documentation tying the closure to staffing shortfalls — it may be relevant to future adverse action or reassignment challenges.

Legal Tip of the Day

If You Feel Pressured to Resign

Pressure to resign can come in subtle ways—suggestions that it’s the “best option” or that things may get worse otherwise. Pause before making any decision. Resignation can limit future options, including appeal rights. Ask for time to consider and gather information.