Soldiers deployed in Iraq and Afghanistan will not receive paychecks next week if the government fails to come together on a resolution to keep the government funded and avert a shutdown, senior government officials said today.
Military personnel will be paid eventually but not until Congress appropriates money to the Department of Defense. Whether civilians at the Pentagon get paid is another story. Since "non-essential" staff is furloughed during a government shutdown, Congress must decide once it reaches a resolution whether to give backpay to dismissed employees.
"We expect a significant number of civilian DOD employees will unfortunately be furloughed if the government shuts down," a senior administration official said today.
Louis Bornman, a DOD employee who has spent 12 years of active duty in the Army, says getting furloughed could jeopardize his entire retirement savings. He says it will also adversely impact the federal government and taxpayers.
"It is very demoralizing to think you're going to be laid off and not paid," said Bornman, based in Ft. Leavenworth, Kan. "People will have to work overtime in the near future, which ultimately will cost the government more money. ... It's very disconcerting that you're looked upon as disposable when you're providing that backup service that the nation depends upon."
Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison, R-Texas, has introduced a bipartisan bill with seven other members that would allow military personnel to receive paychecks in the case of a government shutdown.
Defense Department contractors will also be impacted. During the last shutdown, contractors did not receive back pay, which some Democrats say could put small companies out of business.
"It is going to be very severe," said Rep. Jim Moran, D-Va. "Large contractors are going to be ok. They have a sufficient cash reserve. Small contractors are not... They are hanging on by their finger nails."
At least 800,000 federal employees are expected to be furloughed, the same as the 1995 shutdown. But unlike then, it's unclear whether they would receive back pay for the lost time.
Republicans and Democrats sounded more optimistic today that agovernment shutdown can be avoided, but federal agencies and members of Congress are moving ahead with contingency plans if a deal can't be hatched soon."I have a very strong conclusion after talking with some of these guys there will be no reimbursement," Moran said today. If the shutdown is prolonged, "it is going to have a very severe impact upon federal employees ability to make their mortgage payments, car payments etc. etc. ... This is very very serious."
The clock is quickly running out for lawmakers. Per House rules, legislation has to be posted 48 hours before a vote, which means the GOP leadership has until Thursday morning to post the bill.
House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., huddled once again on Tuesday evening in a meeting that aides say was "productive."
A seemingly frustrated President Obama, who took to the cameras Tuesday to urge lawmakers to act swiftly, said he would host the leaders again today if needed. The three parties met Tuesday at the White House but couldn't find a resolution. The White House says the president may still call a meeting for later today, but as of he is scheduled to make trips to Pennsylvania and New York.
Obama pushed Boehner to sell the $33 billion in cuts Democrats say they originally negotiated with him. The speaker, they say, backed out because of pressure from Tea Party members and conservatives in his own caucus. Boehner said the two sides never agreed to that number, and he pushed for at least $40 billion in cuts Tuesday.
Tea Party-backed members of Congress want to stick to the $61 billion in cuts proposed in the original continuing resolution that passed on Feb. 19. The two short-term extensions that the House has passed in recent weeks cut a total of $10 billion.
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