IV 

116TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. RES. 79 

Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives that Government 

shutdowns are detrimental to the Nation and should not occur. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JANUARY 28, 2019 

Ms. WEXTON submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the 

Committee on Oversight and Reform 

RESOLUTION 

Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives that 

Government shutdowns are detrimental to the Nation 

and should not occur. 

Whereas a portion of the United States Government was shut 

down from December 22, 2018, to January 25, 2019; 

Whereas the shutdown resulted from the President of the 

United States attempting to use a lapse in appropriations 

in order to achieve a legislative end that he had not 

achieved in the regular order of the appropriations process; 

Whereas the Senate, on December 19, 2018, unanimously 

passed legislation to fund Government operations and 

avert a Government shutdown; 


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Whereas the President of the United States on December 20, 

2018, announced that he would refuse to sign that legislation due to the President’s insistence that appropriations for particular items be provided at his preferred levels; 

Whereas as a result of the President’s refusal to sign legislation continuing funding for certain other operations of 

Government, appropriations lapsed on December 22, 

2018; 

Whereas the Government shutdown lasted for 35 days, the 

longest Government shutdown in the history of our country; 

Whereas the lapse in appropriations deprived Americans of 

important services and caused 800,000 Federal workers 

to go without pay for more than a month, imposing significant financial hardships on those workers and their 

families; 

Whereas the lapse in appropriations detrimentally affected 

the Federal Government’s ability to recruit and retain career public servants; 

Whereas the lapse in appropriations put at risk thousands of 

small businesses with Federal contracts and created severe financial hardship for tens of thousands of employees of Federal contractors; 

Whereas the top economic advisor to the President of the 

United States predicted that the Government shutdown 

would reduce economic growth by 0.1 percent for each 

week it lasted; 

Whereas the lapse in appropriations forced Transportation 

Security Administration screeners and air traffic controllers to work without pay, causing many to be unable to 


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afford to work and thereby putting at risk the safety and 

well-being of the traveling public, leading to flight delays, 

and harming airport security operations; 

Whereas the lapse in appropriations put the health of all 

Americans at risk by curtailing and delaying food safety 

inspections; 

Whereas the lapse in appropriations made our Nation less 

safe by impeding Federal Bureau of Investigation efforts 

to crack down on child trafficking, violent crime, and terrorism; 

Whereas the lapse in appropriations resulted in the shuttering of and, in some cases, damage to, countless national parks, monuments and other public lands; 

Whereas the lapse in appropriations furloughed numerous 

Federal employees at the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the Department of Housing and Urban 

Development (HUD), limiting the Federal Government’s 

ability to help communities rebuild after natural disasters; 

Whereas the lapse in appropriations resulted in a majority of 

Environmental Protection Agency employees being furloughed, with negative consequences for public health and 

the environment, such as halted clean-up work at hundreds of toxic Superfund sites across the country, a cessation in inspection and enforcement activities, and a 

stop to new chemical and pesticide safety evaluations and 

approvals; 

Whereas the lapse in appropriations delayed payment of Department of Agriculture loans, operating loan decisions, 

planting and marketing decisions and much-needed assistance for farmers harmed by retaliatory tariffs imVerDate Sep 11 2014 23:43 Jan 28, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\HR79.IH HR79

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posed on American agricultural exports, prevented the 

implementation of a new farm bill with critical support 

for struggling dairy farmers and other operations, and 

cast damaging uncertainty on the nutrition assistance relied on by millions of vulnerable Americans; 

Whereas the lapse in appropriations delayed the issuance of 

tax refunds to America’s hard-working taxpayers; 

Whereas the lapse in appropriations penalized small business 

owners by halting the approval of Small Business Administration loans; 

Whereas the lapse in appropriations impeded the operations 

of United States embassies abroad, undermining the ability of United States personnel to combat terror, enforce 

sanctions, and strengthen alliances; 

Whereas the lapse in appropriations undermined the ability 

of the Department of Homeland Security to respond to 

increased cybersecurity threats, natural disasters, and 

terror threats; 

Whereas the lapse in appropriations delayed approval of 

FHA-backed mortgages, putting Americans at risk of losing the house they were attempting to buy or sell; 

Whereas the lapse in appropriations hobbled the ability of the 

Department of Housing and Urban Development to administer the Section 8 low-income housing program that 

allows for HUD to provide affordable rental housing to 

low-income tenants, including the elderly and disabled; 

Whereas Senator Mitch McConnell has called shutdowns ‘‘a 

failed policy’’; 

Whereas Representative Kevin McCarthy said on December 

13, 2018, that ‘‘going into a shutdown is stupid’’ and 


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said on January 13, 2019, that ‘‘it is unacceptable that 

800,000 U.S. employees are not being paid;’’ 

Whereas Representative Mike Simpson said on January 23, 

2019, that ‘‘this shutdown is stupid’’; 

Whereas Senator Susan Collins said on January 23, 2019, 

‘‘shutdowns represent the ultimate failure to govern and 

should never be used as a weapon to achieve an outcome’’; and 

Whereas Senator Lamar Alexander said on January 24, 

2019, ‘‘it is always wrong for either side to use shutting 

down the Government as a bargaining chip in budget negotiations—it should be as off-limits as chemical weapons 

are to warfare’’: Now, therefore, be it 

1 Resolved, That it is the sense of the House of Rep2 resentatives that— 

3 (1) the shutdown of the Government of the 

4 United States, or any portion thereof, causes sub5 stantial damage to Federal employees, to every 

6 American who benefits directly or indirectly from 

7 Federal services, to our Nation’s economy, and to 

8 the reputation of the United States around the 

9 world; 

10 (2) shutting down the Government of the 

11 United States, or any portion thereof, is not an ac12 ceptable tactic or strategy for resolving differences 

13 regarding policy, funding levels, or governing philos14 ophy; and 


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1 (3) in the future the Congress must ensure the 

2 continued, uninterrupted operations of the Govern3 ment of the United States and its services as well 

4 as its duty to protect and promote the security of 

5 the American people. 

Æ 


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