As the threat of a federal government shutdown looms, Congress must reach a solution before Sunday or, according to the Associated Press, “federal agencies will stop all actions deemed non-essential, and millions of federal employees, including members of the military, won’t receive paychecks.”
U.S. Reps. Marie Gluesenkamp Perez, D-Washougal, and Zach Nunn, R-Iowa, introduced bipartisan legislation Tuesday that would force Congress to submit daily reports during shutdowns that detail the economic impacts and costs to taxpayers, a news release from Gluesenkamp Perez’s office said.
The Problem Solvers Caucus, a bipartisan group of House members, has a framework proposed in order to avoid the shutdown, which Gluesenkamp Perez supports, the release stated.
The proposal cites partisan “polarization” as the hold-up for decision making that could prevent the shutdown.
“The American people deserve transparency and facts from their government — not politicians competing to see who can screech the loudest on the nightly news,” Nunn said in the news release. “This bipartisan bill will ensure taxpayers have the information they need to hold Washington accountable for reckless and irresponsible decision making.”
Nunn and Gluesenkamp Perez’s proposal, the Government Shutdown Impact Report Act of 2023, would require daily reports on the following statistics: The day’s economic output lost due to the shutdown; any decrease in the quarter’s GDP resulting from the shutdown; the value of any assistance, such as loans, grants and contracts, which the small business administration couldn’t offer because of the shutdown; revenue losses for the National Park Service due to closing lands and historic sites on that day; and estimated revenue losses for that day associated with effects of the shutdown on tourism and travel, including by foreign tourists within the United States.
