New Mexico Congressman Steve Pearce recently introduced the idea of a telecommuting Congress where lawmakers would be in a “virtual Congress”. This would give Congress the ability to video conference, vote on legislation, and debate from their own districts.
After Yahoo! CEO banned the company’s telecommuting policy, Pearce’s initiative came as a relief to those who feared other companies would follow suit. Currently 80% of workers feel that working from home or telecommuting is a job benefit and perk. Naturally this would transpire over to our lawmakers as this is quickly becoming more of a necessity and less of a luxury.
One benefit of a telecommuting congress would be a decreased carbon footprint. Each week lawmakers travel back and forth to Washington expending tons of CO2 emissions. Another perk of this would be increased time with family, but also keep in touch with their state districts. This allows them to spend time with the population they represent, as well as distance themselves from lobbyists – all in all fostering a productive environment. These telecommuting solutions allow Congress to accomplish more because they will be able to focus more on work at hand.
Regardless of the way you feel politically, a better work life balance and higher productivity is a non-partisan issue.
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