Soon, the Senate will resume voting, and there is so much to do.
• Twelve annual funding bills need to be completed by 11:59:59 p.m. on September 30
• TheFarmbillto set agricultural policies
• TheFAAreauthorization bill, which is needed every few years for airline safety
• Legislation to curb high prescription drug prices, which includes many of my priorities, passed with bipartisan support out of the Senate Finance Committee
Preventing Government Shutdowns and Addressing Federal Spending We’re quickly approaching another moment when our broken federal budget and spending process is on full display— the end of the fiscal year on September 30. The Senate has passed zero spending bills, and it looks once again like we will face unnecessary drama in Washington, DC, because Congress failed to do one of its explicit duties—fund the government.
Our debt continues to skyrocket past $32 trillion, and some in our nation’s Capitol do not seem to care.
So how do we end “shutdown showdowns” and get our spending under control?
Shutdowns are political drama, but they cost taxpayers more money, they make government even more inefficient, and even slower.The people who really suffer during a shutdown are American taxpayers and federal workers and their families— simply because Congress couldn’t get its act together and pass spending bills on time.
My Prevent Government Shutdowns Act would end government shutdowns by keeping the government open but forcing Congress to stay in Washington, seven days a week until the work to fund the government is complete. We could only consider spending bills until the budget work is done. Members of Congress, our staff, and the White House Office of Management and Budget staff could not leave DC until all the spending bills for the next fiscal year passed. It’s the same as putting two siblings in a room until they work out their disagreements. I can say from personal experience— it works.
I pray that you and your family never have something happen that requires you to apply for disaster assistance. But sometimes our weather in Oklahoma is unpredictable, and it takes a toll on our neighborhoods.
The federal government does have a unique role and resources following a disaster. I’ve consistently heard from Oklahoma disaster victims about how difficult and disjointed the process of finding and filling out an application was. That’s just bad customer service on the part of the federal government.
I introduced a bill with Michigan Senator Gary Peters to create one online application portal to use across federal agencies that helps disaster victims easily apply for assistance on their phone or tablet while they clean up. Currently, disaster victims must fill out separate and detailed applications for each agency they need help from. For example, the Individuals and Households Program from FEMA can provide assistance for housing and other needs, and the Small Business Administration’s Real Property Disaster Loans and Personal Property Loans are available to eligible homeowners and renters. The process of figuring all that out can take weeks or months.
My Disaster Assistance Simplification Act would significantly streamline this process to reduce the burden on disaster survivors.