Working for You in a Government Shutdown
 |
| The United States Capitol Building |
At midnight on Tuesday, Congress failed to appropriate the necessary funding to federal agencies, forcing an government shutdown. Under the Constitution, money cannot be withdrawn from the Treasury unless appropriated by Congress. With funding expiring on October 1, the House did our job by passing a Continuing Resolution (CR) to maintain current spending levels until all 12 appropriations bills can be passed. For this measure to become law, the Senate needed to pass the CR. Since 60 votes are required to get legislation through the Senate, bipartisan cooperation is required. Unfortunately, Senate Democrats chose to vote down the CR, even though nearly every Democrat supported the same type of short-term funding extension 13 times during the Biden Administration to prevent shutdowns. The Democrats are demanding an extension to COVID-era Obamacare premium tax credits that subsidize healthcare for high income earners and would cost more than $400 billion over the next decade. These were emergency subsidies set to sundown and should have been negotiated during the normal appropriations process, not during a CR. Democrats chose to block paychecks for our fellow Americans in the federal government rather than stop unsustainably driving up our national debt. Each week this shutdown continues, our economy loses an estimated $15 billion in GDP. Not only are we facing large scale economic loss, families who rely on programs like WIC face uncertainty as these benefits are put at risk.
Here is my statement on the shutdown.
Despite this lapse in government funding, my office remains open and committed to serving you. Unfortunately, we cannot process requests for U.S. Capitol flags or tours in Washington due to the shutdown. However, we are continuing to provide casework support for constituents who need assistance with federal agencies. You can visit my website to fill out a Privacy Release Form and request assistance from my office. Please note that there will be delays in agency responses due to the shutdown. I also have a shutdown guidance page to answer your questions. It is my honor to serve you in Congress. I remain committed to getting the government back open for the people we serve.
|
