As the partial federal government shutdown continues into record-setting territory at 23 days and counting, hundreds of thousands of federal employees do not know when they will receive their next paycheck and how they will support their families. Farm Share, a Florida-based food nonprofit, stands ready to assist these families by providing them with healthy and nutritious fruits, vegetables, rice, proteins, and other non-perishable food products. [Read more…] about Farm Share to Provide Immediate Food Assistance to In-Need Floridians Impacted by Partial Government Shutdown
Government Shutdown
Mast, Bipartisan Members Introduce Bill To Pay Members of Coast Guard During Shutdown
Last night, U.S. Congressman Brian Mast (FL-18)—along with Representatives Peter Defazio, Bennie Thompson and John Garamendi—introduced the Pay Our Coast Guard Parity Act of 2019, bipartisan legislation that would provide funding for the United States Coast Guard and ensure that active duty and reserve members of the Coast Guard are paid during the government shutdown.
Mast Statement on End of Manufactured Shutdown Crisis
U.S. Congressman Brian Mast (FL-18) today released the following statement:
“I’m relieved to say that the government is going to be back open, but this was an entirely avoidable crisis. The bill passed today by the Senate is fundamentally the same as the one the House passed last week. The fact that a minority of Senators were able to hold the government hostage for 3 days—and make no real changes to the bill—shows just how broken the system really is. Sadly far too many people in Washington remain more interested in helping themselves than the people they represent.
“With this manufactured crisis behind us, we need to get back to work—fix the broken system, stop governing from crisis to crisis, get our country’s finances back on track, cut wasteful spending and do what we were sent here to do: put power back in the hands of the American people.”
BACKGROUND
On Thursday, the House of Representatives passed a bill to keep the government open through February 16, 2018 and extend the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) for six years. The only change in the bill passed by the Senate today—after 3 days of holding healthcare funding for 9 million children hostage and jeopardizing pay for our military—was to reduce the length of the funding extension to February 8, 2018.
Sen. Bill Nelson on vote to end shutdown
By a vote of 81 – 18, the U.S. Senate today voted to cut off debate on a bill to end the federal government shutdown – essentially ensuring its passage in a subsequent vote likely to be held later today.
In speaking prior to the vote, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) credited a small bipartisan group of senators for their efforts over the weekend to bring people together to reach a consensus to reopen the government. Among the group of 13 Democrats and 9 Republicans credited for their efforts was U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson (D-FL).
Here’s a statement from Nelson following today’s vote:
“This is a win for bipartisanship and common sense,” Nelson said. “I have been meeting with a group of moderate senators for days to reach a consensus to end the shutdown and get a commitment to take up other critical legislation. As a result, there is now a path forward to help the Dreamers, fund the military and other agencies and provide Florida with the hurricane disaster assistance it still needs.”
