S. 4337 would authorize federal agencies to hire military spouses for remote work without going through a competitive process. CBO estimates that enacting the bill would not significantly affect the federal budget.
Under current law, spouses of members of the U.S. Armed Forces on active duty and spouses of disabled or deceased members of the armed forces receive hiring preferences for jobs with the federal government. S. 4337 would expand the application of those preferences to remote work positions. That change would not affect the total number of people the federal government would employ or their compensation. However, implementing the bill could cause agencies to modify administrative processes. CBO estimates that the costs to implement those changes would be insignificant.
Enacting the bill also could affect direct spending by some agencies that are allowed to use fees, receipts from the sale of goods, and other collections to cover operating costs. CBO estimates that any net changes in direct spending by those agencies would be negligible because most of them can adjust amounts collected to reflect changes in operating costs.
