Federal Managers Association

Press Release

• FMA’S CARTER URGES CONGRESS TO PREVENT A GOVERNMENT SHUTDOWN - September 12, 2023

• Alexandria, VA – Fiscal Year 2023 appropriations expire at midnight on September 30, 2023, and FY24 appropriations have not been signed into law. With a government shutdown looming, Federal Managers Association's (FMA) National President Craig Carter, released the following statement imploring Congress to pass a compromise to avert a government shutdown that would negatively impact all Americans:

  "The current fiscal year is nearly over, and not a single appropriations bill has been passed or signed into law. Unless Congress acts, funding for federal agencies and departments will lapse and the government will begin another shutdown. Under a shutdown, many of our members, and federal employees across the country, would be told to stay home. While this would obviously negatively impact them and their families, all Americans will feel the pain. Not only will services be delayed or cancelled, but communities will suffer as furloughed employees are unable to spend money in their local economies.

  "Federal managers want to be at their posts fulfilling their congressionally-mandated missions and providing important services to every citizen in the United States. Instead, they must waste time and resources preparing for a potential shutdown. Delaying appropriations and flirting with government shutdowns results in egregious costs and waste, even if a shutdown is averted. It takes significant time and resources for agencies to prepare for a potential shutdown. Private sector business would never manage a budget this way, and neither should Congress.

  “We are aware that Congressional leaders are seeking a continuing resolution (CR) to allow for more time to finalize FY24 funding. We at FMA grudgingly support a CR in lieu of a shutdown. However, if we, as federal workers, never completed our work on time and had to continually ask for a four-to-six-week extension, we would probably be seeking employment elsewhere. By not appropriating funds, and working under a CR every year, this causes extra costs to agencies having to work under the previous year’s budget, and does not allow agencies proper planning opportunities, including being able to buy equipment and supplies in bulk to save money.

  “Working under a CR also adds stress to federal workers. In addition to performing our regular duties, as each deadline approaches, we have to create furlough lists and contingency plans in case we have a government shutdown, even if that shutdown is ultimately averted. This results in lost resources and man hours we can never recover, and billions of wasted taxpayer dollars. There is no excuse for such wastefulness. We urge Congress to come together and provide full FY24 appropriations for the good of the country.”

##