Author; Glenn Ivey    Published: 9/28/2023    Office of Rep. Ivey

Dear Neighbor,

House Democrats, Senate Democrats and President Biden are working hard to avert a shutdown, but some conservatives are still refusing to fund the government. As your Congressman, I am committed to ensuring that should we face an avoidable government shutdown, you’ll be prepared. So many in our congressional district are federal workers, dependent on their paychecks to support their families and pay their bills, and so many rely on federal benefits – everything from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP, to veterans’ health care – on a day-to-day basis.

According to the House Budget Committee Democratic Caucus, a shutdown in Maryland would threaten:

• to furlough or require that 144,165 federal employees work without pay;
• the pay of 48,236 of our active-duty and reserve personnel;
• the processing of small-business loans that account for $329,331,400 in annual funding;
• the processing of housing loans that account for $382,381,470 in annual funding;
• the processing of farm loans that account for $21,424,000 in annual funding; and
• the access of 123,101 people to the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children, or WIC.

That’s why I invited National Vice President Ottis Johnson, Jr., from the American Federation of Government Employees and Kyle Bayliss from the Maryland Small Business Development Center to join me in a Tele-Town Hall earlier this week to talk about what to expect and how to plan for a prospective government shutdown. Over 4,500 of our neighbors joined the call, but if you missed it, you can watch the entire event in the video below: