Spanberger Calls for Democrats & Republicans to Work Together to Fund Government Through End of FY2020

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Representative Abigail Spanberger is calling on Congress to come to a bipartisan agreement that will fully fund the federal government through the end of fiscal year (FY) 2020. Currently, government funding is set to expire on December 20, 2019.

In a letter sent to U.S. House and U.S. Senate leadership, Spanberger and her colleagues urged Republican and Democratic leadership to work together to prevent another government shutdown and to maintain critical funding for national defense and domestic programs. Additionally, the letter underscores the tremendous uncertainty created by repeated short-term government funding resolutions. Spanberger sent the joint letter with members of the Republican Tuesday group and members of the Democratic Blue Dog Coalition.

“We write to express grave concerns regarding the dwindling timeframe for the consideration of regular appropriations bills prior to the current funding deadline on December 20,” the letter states. “With six days on the legislative calendar before funding expires, a bipartisan commitment is needed to fully fund the entire government through the end of FY2020 and prevent yet another costly and unnecessary government shutdown.”

“Providing adequate funding for government operations constitutes one of Congress’s most fundamental responsibilities to the American people,” the letter continues. “With millions of our constituents depending on the certainty of federal funding for critical national defense operations and domestic programs, any lapse in appropriations represents an unacceptable outcome that needlessly jeopardizes their well-being.”

Last month, Spanberger warned against the continued passage of stopgap measures that repeatedly push the federal government toward potential shutdowns.

The bipartisan letter was led by all members of Blue Dog Coalition leadership—U.S. Representatives Stephanie Murphy (D-FL-07), Tom O’Halleran (D-AZ-01), Lou Correa (D-CA-46), Anthony Brindisi (D-NY-22), and Kurt Schrader (D-OR-05)—as well as Co-Chairs of the Tuesday Group, U.S. Representatives John Katko (R-NY-24) and Fred Upton (R-MI-06), and member of the Tuesday Group, U.S. Representative Steve Womack (R-AR-03).

Click here to read the letter. The full text of the letter is also below:

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Dear Speaker Pelosi, Leader McCarthy, Leader McConnell, and Leader Schumer,

We write to express grave concerns regarding the dwindling timeframe for the consideration of regular appropriations bills prior to the current funding deadline on December 20. With six days on the legislative calendar before funding expires, a bipartisan commitment is needed to fully fund the entire government through the end of FY2020 and prevent yet another costly and unnecessary government shutdown.

Providing adequate funding for government operations constitutes one of Congress’s most fundamental responsibilities to the American people. With millions of our constituents depending on the certainty of federal funding for critical national defense operations and domestic programs, any lapse in appropriations represents an unacceptable outcome that needlessly jeopardizes their well-being.

In the absence of a long-term spending agreement, Congress has become reliant on short-term continuing resolutions (CRs) to avoid a government shutdown. These stop-gap CRs create financial uncertainty for hundreds of thousands of federal workers and an even larger number of Americans who depend on the services they provide. Moreover, our military leaders have warned Congress that lurching from CR to CR is detrimental to our troops and dangerous for our national security. Our armed forces depend on predictable budgeting to make reliable investments in technology and training that empower our men and women in uniform to combat growing threats around the globe.

Congress must end the political games and focus on delivering meaningful solutions to the American people. We urge you, the leaders of the House and the Senate, to come together to reach an agreement that fully funds the entire federal government through the end of FY 2020, so the American people can have the peace of mind they deserve.

Thank you for your time and consideration of this request. We look forward to working together and ensuring our constituents have a strong voice on this pressing issue.

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