State agencies report wildly different remote and in-person work rates, records show

Michigan’s new budget for 2027 requires that state agencies make a plan for how often state employees work in-person.

About 25% of state workers work in-person, House Speaker Matt Hall, R-Richland Township, said in a July 7 press conference at which he called for more employees to report to the office.

“We need a uniform policy for the departments with their workforce, because what you're seeing now is some of them, their policy is like one day a month,” said Hall. “Others are here three days a week. What we need is a uniform policy. These buildings are empty. But they won’t show us their policies. But with this new budget law, they’ll have to show us their policies.”

Hall said he has “very bad” swipe-card data suggesting that fewer than 25% of state workers report in person.

“I’m hopeful it’ll bring the workers back to work,” he said. “They’re supposed to be at 80%. They’re not doing that. What they're doing is assigning names to desks, and people aren’t coming into work.”

Michigan Capitol Confidential filed records requests with over a dozen state agencies, asking how many employees work in-person, hybrid, or remotely as of June 15, 2026. The answers varied.

1. The Secretary of State’s office denied the request. It said that the department “does not possess records responsive to your request.”

2. The Department of Natural Resources said it had 1,364 in-person, 563 hybrid, and two remote active career state classified positions as of June 15, 2026.

3. The Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity had 102 fully in-person, 1,847 hybrid, and 409 remote active career state classified positions as of June 15, 2026. The employees working remote positions mostly have home workstations because they visit worksites and conduct fieldwork, the agency said.

4. The Department of Military and Veterans Affairs had 724 in-person, 71 hybrid, and 10 remote active career state classified positions for the pay period containing June 15, 2026.

5. The Department of Insurance and Financial Services had 24 in-person, 213 hybrid, and 142 remote active career state classified positions as of June 15, 2026.

6. The Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs had 1068 staff who work a hybrid schedule and 596 who are in-person. No one has a fully remote work schedule.

7. The Michigan Economic Development Corporation had six in-person, 93 hybrid, zero remote, and 14 field-based positions.

8. The Department of Technology, Management, and Budget had 2,398 hybrid employees and 603 in-person employees.

9. The Michigan Department of Education had 58 in-person employees, 407 hybrid employees, and 15 remote employees.

10. The Attorney General’s office had over 60% of its employees traveling frequently. They are attorneys and special agents whose work requires them to attend trials, hearings, mediations, depositions, and meetings around the state.

11. The Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy had 278 employees fully in-person, 981 hybrid, and 389 remote as of June 15, 2026.

12. The Department of Lifelong Education, Advancement, and Potential had no in-person employees, 268 hybrid, and 70 remote employees as of June 15, 2026.

13. The Department of Treasury, including the Michigan Gaming Control Board and Michigan Bureau of State Lottery, had 178 in-person, 981 hybrid, and 591 remote active career state classified positions as of June 15, 2026.

14. The Michigan Department of Transportation has 1,150 in-person employees, 1,776 hybrid employees, and 14 remote employees.

15. The Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development had 326 in-person, 171 hybrid, and one remote active career state classified position for the pay period containing June 15, 2026.