My office has created a webpage that includes information on what a shutdown means, how our community will be affected, frequently asked questions (FAQs), and more. As we learn more, my team will be updating this page so please check it frequently. 

I've held meetings and roundtables with our local officials from the City of El Paso, El Paso County, and other local governments to share the impact of a shutdown on our community.

I also hosted a press conference with local credit unions to share resources available to impacted federal employees.

I joined a Democratic letter to Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins to immediately release the nearly $5 billion in SNAP contingency funding that would allow November benefits to go out without interruption. 

This came as the USDA announced that the agency's contingency fund cannot legally be used to provide food assistance benefits for more than 42 million people in November, as the government shutdown drags on.

Yet this is a complete reversal of the USDA's earlier stance that could be found in a now-deleted copy of their contingency plan for a shutdown.

If the contingency funding is not used, 42 million American seniors, veterans and families with children (including over 67,000 households in El Paso County) risk not being able to keep food on their table. 

I also hosted a federal resource fair on October 11, a texting town hall on October 16, and a tele-town hall on October 21 as part of my commitment to keep you informed and help navigate the shutdown.

Meet Dorothy C.

This month, I asked El Pasoans like Dorothy to share their stories with me about how they would be impacted if ACA tax credits expired and premiums skyrocketed. The latest estimates show that there are 92,000 people in our community like Dorothy that would pay an average of $1,000 more per year.