Shutdown Averted as Congress Passes Short-Term Funding Bill

American Federation of Government Employees National President Everett Kelley today issued the following statement:

“Congress did the right thing by passing legislation to keep the government funded through Dec. 3. Bringing federal agencies to the brink of a shutdown was, once again, a terrible waste of resources and caused unnecessary worry and distraction. So many federal employees are working night and day to contain a global pandemic that has taken the lives of more than 675,000 Americans, and the idea that they might not have received a paycheck on payday is unconscionable.

“This short-term reprieve must be used to pass full-year appropriations bills and keep the government from defaulting on its debts. We will be facing another potential shutdown in just nine weeks unless Congress passes legislation to fund federal agencies beyond Dec. 3, and no one knows the impact on government operations of the threatened breach of the debt ceiling. We urge lawmakers to pass full-year appropriations bills so federal employees can focus exclusively on doing their jobs for the American people.”

The American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) is the largest federal employee union, representing 700,000 workers in the federal government and the government of the District of Columbia. www.afge.org