The government is currently being funded by a continuing resolution that expires on April 28, 2017. The following is a statement from Maya MacGuineas, president of the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget:
This month Congress faces a statutory deadline to fund the government or else risk a costly and unnecessary government shutdown.
Lawmakers should fund the full government for the remainder of the fiscal year before current funding runs out. Allowing the government to shut down for even a day over political squabbles is irresponsible, and the American people and the American economy deserve better.
The new funding legislation should comply with spending limits already set in law and include real offsets for any new or increased spending without relying on budget tricks, like abuse of the Overseas Contingency Operations fund and emergency spending designations.
Government shutdowns are not leverage—they are failure. Barely keeping the lights on should not be considered a budgeting success.
Our nation needs a budget process that works every time and does not use gimmicks or smokescreens to hide a rapidly rising and historically high national debt.
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For more information contact Patrick Newton, Press Secretary, at newton@crfb.org.
