With less than 36 hours until the government shutdown due to Republicans’ irresponsible actions in Washington, Senator Reverend Warnock has released a fact sheet outlining the impact of a government shutdown on Georgia families, businesses, military personnel and more
Senator Reverend Warnock: “I think this chaos we are witnessing is just an example of what happens when politicians focus on policy rather than people.”
Washington, D.C – Today, U.S. Senator Reverend Raphael Warnock (D-GA) highlighted the impact of a government shutdown on Georgia families, businesses, military members, farmers, public safety and more. Senator Warnock believes Republicans in Washington must work with the rest of Congress to fund the government. Georgia businesses rely on the federal government to stay open and functioning to keep our economy strong, and Georgia families and communities rely on investments and services that cease when the government closes. More importantly, a federal government shutdown will distract Congress from focusing on the issues that matter most: reducing health care costs, creating jobs, ensuring the country’s security and more.
“As I move around the state of Georgia, ordinary people are scratching their heads as they watch what is unfolding in Washington DC. They’re trying to figure out how to take care of their families and promote their prosperity and well-being.” said Senator Reverend Warnock. “And I think this chaos we’re experiencing right now is just an example of what happens when politicians put policy and not people at the center.”
Read more HERE and below about the impact of the government shutdown in Georgia:
ABOUT OUR FAMILIES:
- Nutritional Benefits: Approximately 221,000 Georgians– including approximately 50,800 women, 112,600 children and 57,440 young children – who rely on the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) could lose funds to purchase food within days of a shutdown.
- Childcare: Also on October 1st, as many as possible 1,988 Head Start and Early Head Start students (Ages 0-5) across Georgia may no longer receive services. The number will rise as the shutdown continues and many low-income working parents are left on their own to cover child care costs.
- National Parks: Also Georgia 11 national parks may close or have their access restricted, including the Jimmy Carter Presidential Library and MLK Jr.’s Freedom Hall.
TO THE MILITARY:
- Active Duty: Georgia has approximately 70,000 active military personnel who show up for work during a government shutdown but don’t receive a paycheck. This will impact morale and impact our military’s readiness for future operations.
- Reserves: The 27,000 reservists and guardsmen In Georgia, it is highly likely that their education will be canceled or postponed during a shutdown, further complicating their work-life balance and negatively impacting their expected income or military benefits.
ABOUT OUR VETERANS:
- Jobs: Georgia employs almost 85,000 federal employeesand over 32% of these workers are veterans. All federal employees are at risk of missing a paycheck if the government doesn’t receive funding, meaning they miss out 27,000 Georgia Veterans risk going to work but not receiving a salary.
ABOUT OUR FARMERS:
- FSA: Various government-subsidized agricultural loans will be stopped During a government shutdown, this could jeopardize the finances of countless Georgia farmers who rely on funding from the Farm Service Agency (FSA) and other federal agricultural programs to make ends meet and grow their produce. The FSA will also pause disaster relief programs that are currently helping some Georgia farmers recover.
ABOUT PUBLIC SAFETY
- Policing: Federal law enforcement agencies, their numbers over 130,000 nationwidewill have to work largely without pay during a government shutdown, and a lack of funding could also impact the ability of federal agencies to continue to participate in federal, state and local law enforcement task forces – including those involved in investigations into the Human trafficking work, disrupting terrorist operations and combating drug crimes.
ON AIR TRAVEL
- TSA: In Georgia — home to Atlanta’s Hartsfield-Jackson Airport, the busiest airport in the world — a government shutdown would mean this 1,727 local Transportation Security Administration (TSA) agents. would have to work without pay, which has caused significant delays and longer wait times for travelers at airports across the country during previous government shutdowns.
- Air traffic control: Additionally approx 577 air traffic controllers in Georgia will work without pay during a government shutdown, which would also halt air traffic controller training – potentially leading to long-term disruptions to air travel.
FOR SMALL BUSINESSES
- Capital Loans: Small businesses in Georgia would lose about $5,494,100 in financing Every day the government shuts down because a government shutdown would force the Small Business Administration (SBA) to stop processing new business loans for small businesses.
FOR DISASTER RECOVERY:
- FEMA: The Federal Emergency Management Agency’s Disaster Relief Fund (DRF) continues to dwindle and is now forced to prioritize only immediate life-saving and life-sustaining efforts. There are such during a government shutdown 10 Disaster Recovery Projects in Georgia This could be further delayed due to a lack of government disaster funding.
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