(WASHINGTON, D.C.) – Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-MD) is an original cosponsor of the bipartisan Federal Employee Retroactive Pay Fairness Act, legislation to guarantee back pay to furloughed workers in the event of a government shutdown. Funding for the federal government expires at midnight.
The legislation, introduced by Reps. Don Beyer (D-VA) and Rob Wittman (R-VA), would guarantee that no federal employees would lose pay if a government shutdown occurs. Raskin represents more than 80,000 government employees across Maryland’s 8th District.
The Beyer-Wittman bill has 40 bipartisan cosponsors and earned praise from the American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) and National Treasury Employees Union (NTEU).
"AFGE would like to thank Congressman Beyer (D-VA) and Congressman Wittman (R-VA) for introducing the ‘Federal Employee Retroactive Pay Fairness Act,’” said AFGE National President J. David Cox. “Federal employees are hardworking public servants who are dedicated to providing quality public services. Federal employees and their families should not be forced to go without pay when they are not allowed to do their jobs because Congress cannot pass a funding measure. Too many Americans—veterans, seniors, and other hardworking people rely on services provided by the federal government. In a government shutdown, it is the American people who pay the price.”
“The National Treasury Employees Union applauds Rep. Beyer and Rep. Wittman for introducing this legislation,” said NTEU National President Tony Reardon. “They recognize that frontline federal employees should not lose pay in the event of a shutdown of the federal government. These employees do not control the funding of the federal government and should not suffer when that funding runs out. I hope we do not get to the shutdown stage but I support this effort to protect the federal workforce.”
Text of H.R. 4827, the Federal Employee Retroactive Pay Fairness Act, can be found here.
Congressman Jamie Raskin represents Maryland’s 8th Congressional District, which includes Montgomery, Frederick, and Carroll counties. He is the Vice Ranking Member of the House Judiciary Committee, a Senior Democratic Whip, and Freshman Representative to the House Democratic Steering & Policy Committee. He also serves on the House Oversight & Government Reform Committee and the Committee on House Administration.