FMA Endorses Bill to Protect Feds During a Shutdown
The prompt for this round of the FEDforum is new year, new. This week, hear from the Federal Managers Association (FMA).
Most bills introduced in Congress languish and do not advance. More than 15,000 bills were introduced in the 117th Congress and 364 of them were signed into law. But sometimes a bill is introduced that is a complete no-brainer.
That is clearly the case with the Federal Employees Civil Relief Act (H.R. 1301 / S. 640), introduced in early March by Rep. Derek Kilmer (D-WA) and Sen. Brian Schatz (D-HI). Their legislation, which FMA swiftly endorsed, would protect feds from negative financial consequences from civil penalties due to situations completely out of their control, including a government shutdown or a debt default. This is about as commonsense as legislation comes.
The Federal Employees Civil Relief Act would extend protections to federal workers and contractors who are unable to pay their bills due to a lapse in appropriations causing a government shutdown. Regrettably, the threat and potential of a shutdown become all too real every year.
Following the shutdown of 2018-2019, Congress took an important step to guarantee feds backpay at some point, whenever funding is eventually restored, following a shutdown. FMA supported that effort. However, these employees still face a threat of significant negative financial consequences during a shutdown if they are furloughed during a shutdown or required to work without pay. The Federal Employees Civil Relief Act would protect workers impacted by a shutdown from: being evicted or foreclosed upon; having their car or other property repossessed; falling behind in their student loan payments; having negative effects on their credit history; falling behind in paying their bills; or losing their insurance because of missed premiums. The bill extends protections to dedicated federal employees, similar to the protections provided by the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act.
Federal employees have no control over whether Congress and the Administration do their jobs to keep the government funded and functioning, or prevent the country from defaulting on debts. But Congressional inaction, or inability to work together, may have real consequences for feds, who are innocent bystanders in these situations. Rep. Kilmer and Sen. Schatz understand this and their bill would absolve these affected feds by allowing them to apply to a court to temporarily postpone payment obligations or eviction or foreclosure actions.
“Federal workers aren’t Democrats or Republicans when they show up for work,” Kilmer said in a press release upon introduction. “They are public servants that protect our sailors through their work at the shipyard, that prepare timber sales in the federal forests, that welcome visitors to national parks, that care for our veterans, that ensure citizens can get the services they need, and that keep us safe. We should have their backs. That’s why I’m leading legislation with Senator Schatz to ensure that if federal workers in our region have to deal with a government shutdown, their finances – and their families – are protected.”
The legislation would allow courts to weigh the equities of both parties to the contract in deciding how contractual obligations should be treated. It is the right thing to do and protects feds from being caught in a crossfire.
In addition to strongly supporting the Federal Employees Civil Relief Act, FMA urges Congress to protect feds’ security clearances and other potential negative ramifications that could impact feds through no fault of their own. We commend Sen. Schatz and Rep. Kilmer for their leadership on this issue and will work with them to advance this commonsense bill through the 118th Congress.
The column from the Federal Managers Association (FMA) is part of the FEDforum, an initiative to unite voices across the federal community. The FEDforum is a space for federal employee groups to share their organizations’ initiatives and activities with the FEDmanager audience.
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