"After Trump largely ended remote work and telework flexibility for the federal workforce, Austin Holland, who served in the Housing and Urban Development Department's Office of General Counsel, was forced to live during the week in the basement of a friend from the Washington, D.C., area. Holland and his family live in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. Before Trump, he was required to report to HUD's D.C. headquarters two days out of every two-week pay period, which he said was manageable."
"About 10 years ago, he switched careers to go to law school with the goal of entering public service, specifically at a federal agency. "I'm an optimist. I thought I would be able to find a path to continue my work at HUD, because I really loved my work," he said. "But when it seemed like there was no option other than being in the office every day, I eventually took the [deferred resignation program].""
Hundreds of thousands of federal employees exited the federal government after remote work restrictions tightened under Trump, prompting nonprofits and new programs to assist impacted workers. Many displaced feds found state or local roles that allowed continued public-service work. Austin Holland, a HUD Office of General Counsel attorney, was forced to live during the week in a friend's basement because of reinstated in-office requirements. He accepted a deferred resignation program that preserved pay and benefits through Sept. 30, 2025. Work for America launched Civic Match in November 2024 as a free network connecting federal employees, contractors and campaign staffers with state and local hiring managers; through Civic Match, Holland met representatives from the Pennsylvania Housing and Finance Agency.
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