NARFE is urging federal employees, retirees, and supporters to contact their House and Senate lawmakers to cosponsor the Prevent Government Shutdowns Act (H.R. 4632 / S. 4632), legislation the group says would reduce the disruption caused by funding lapses and create stronger incentives for Congress to avoid shutdowns.
- Ask: NARFE is calling on constituents to press lawmakers to cosponsor the Prevent Government Shutdowns Act.
- Bills: H.R. 4632 (House) and S. 4632 (Senate).
- Purpose: The proposal would establish additional funding mechanisms so certain government programs and activities don’t automatically lapse during a shutdown, according to NARFE.
- Workforce impact: NARFE framed the push as a way to reduce the risk of furloughs and pay disruptions tied to appropriations gaps.
- What NARFE wants members to do: Contact your representative and senators and ask them to add their names as cosponsors, the group said.
- Why now: NARFE cited recurring brinkmanship around annual appropriations and the operational and financial strain shutdown threats place on federal workers and the public.
Shutdowns occur when Congress and the president fail to enact appropriations or a continuing resolution to fund agencies. During a lapse, agencies generally must halt non-excepted work, and many employees are furloughed. In recent shutdowns, Congress later authorized back pay for furloughed federal employees, but workers can still face short-term cash-flow problems and uncertainty around reporting requirements, leave, and benefit deductions.
NARFE’s alert argues that preventing lapses—or limiting what stops during a lapse—would reduce the downstream impacts on employees and agency operations. The group said the Prevent Government Shutdowns Act is designed to keep more functions funded when appropriations expire and to push lawmakers toward completing funding on time.
For federal employees trying to quantify how a shutdown-related disruption could affect longer-term finances, it can help to understand the value of your projected retirement benefit and service time. Tools like the FERS retirement calculator can help employees estimate retirement income under different scenarios.
Source: NARFE News