OFFICIALS LEGISLATION INTEREST GROUPS PUBLIC STATEMENTS COMMITTEES VETOES

Newsletter: Hoyer: Time for House Republicans to Pass Clean DHS Funding Bill to Prevent a Shutdown

Statement

Date: Feb. 26, 2015
Issues: National Security Government Budget and Spending

We are two days away from House Republicans allowing funding for the Department of Homeland Security to expire, which will shut down the Department and put our country's national security at risk. If the Department shuts down, nearly 4,500 employees in the state of Maryland will be impacted, forcing some front-line personnel to be furloughed and others to work without pay, including many in the Fifth District. This also means that recruitment and training for law enforcement will stop and the United States Secret Service training facility in Beltsville, Maryland will be forced to close. In Maryland and our district, state and local preparedness grant programs funded through DHS will be halted. This includes:

The Transit Security Grant Program that improves security measures at our bus and rail systems;

The State Homeland Security Grant Program that provides support to local police departments to address training and equipment needs in order to prevent terrorism and other catastrophic events; and

The Port Security Grant Program which provides security services at the Port of Baltimore.

This week, I cosponsored the DHS Employee Retroactive Pay Fairness Act, which would ensure that all federal Department of Homeland Security employees receive retroactive pay if there is a shutdown, regardless of furlough status. The dedicated employees of the Department of Homeland Security should not be punished if Republicans decide to shut down the Department over their political agenda. I also spoke on the House floor and urged my colleagues to pass a clean DHS funding bill.

The people of Maryland's Fifth District and our nation deserve better, and I will continue to stand up for Department of Homeland Security employees and call for passage of a clean funding bill before this critical agency is forced to shut down on February 28.

As always, thank you for allowing me to share this update with you, and please continue to share your concerns and insights with me by contacting my office or connecting with me on Facebook, Twitter, or YouTube.

With warmest regards, I am

Sincerely yours,

Steny H. Hoyer


Source
arrow_upward