Ernst Announces Sale of D.C. Building

WASHINGTON - Today, U.S. Senator Joni Ernst (R-Iowa) joined U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) Administrator Edward Forst to announce that GSA's Regional Office Building in D.C. has been sold, which will save taxpayers over $700 million.

The sale is a result of years of Ernst's work. She has called out empty government buildings and has been the chief advocate for selling off expensive pieces of prime real estate in order to save taxpayers billions.

Download pictures of Senator Ernst here.

"After years of working to put empty and expensive federal buildings up for sale, today, the GSA Regional Office Building is officially sold!" said Ernst. "Even though this building has been vacant, the American people have still been footing the bill. With this sale, we are saving Americans over $205 million and taking an additional $500 million in required updates off taxpayers' tab. I'm thankful Administrator Forst and the Trump administration are putting taxpayers first. We are doing something today that rarely happens in Washington, downsizing both the cost and actual size of the government."

Every year, Washington pays out over $81 million maintaining underutilized offices, including nearly 7,700 vacant buildings and another 2,265 that are largely empty. Last year, GSA reported that their deferred maintenance exceeds $6 billion and will grow to $20 billion in five years.

Background:

In December 2023, Ernst exposed how federal office buildings were virtual ghost towns with her naughty list that showed not a single federal agency was occupying even half its office space.

In 2024, Ernst released her "Out of Office" report revealing the cost and extent of abandoned and underutilized government buildings.

Ernst has led the call to sell off empty and expensive Washington buildings, and her FOR SALE Act would put six pieces of prime properties in the nation's capital on the auction block to generate $400 million or more in revenue, while also canceling costs, including $2.9 billion for overdue maintenance. Her DISPOSAL Act eliminates regulatory hurdles to fast-track the sale of unneeded federal buildings.

###