To: The United States House of Representatives and The United States Senate
Eliminate the Possibility of Government Shutdowns or Lessen Their Impacts
This petition supports passing legislative measures that will prevent or lessen the effects of future government shutdowns.
We urge Congress to pass legislation that (i) prevents future shutdowns from occurring or (ii) lessens their effects on federal workers. Specifically, we urge Congress to consider measures that would: (i) trigger automatic continuing resolutions to afford legislators more time to pass a budget, (ii) impose pain on legislators until Congress passes a budget (e.g., temporarily withholding legislators’ salaries, preventing legislators from leaving Washington, D.C.), and (iii) continuing to pay federal workers at some level during a shutdown.
We urge Congress to pass legislation that (i) prevents future shutdowns from occurring or (ii) lessens their effects on federal workers. Specifically, we urge Congress to consider measures that would: (i) trigger automatic continuing resolutions to afford legislators more time to pass a budget, (ii) impose pain on legislators until Congress passes a budget (e.g., temporarily withholding legislators’ salaries, preventing legislators from leaving Washington, D.C.), and (iii) continuing to pay federal workers at some level during a shutdown.
Why is this important?
The most recent lapse in federal appropriations (2018–2019) shut down certain non-essential government services and forced some federal employees (e.g., airport security screeners) to report to work without pay. According to the non-partisan Congressional Budget Office (CBO), the partial shutdown also irreparably damaged the US economy, reducing growth by an estimated $8 billion in the first quarter of 2019 (https://www.cbo.gov/publication/54937).