Wednesday, September 25, 2013

Moran introduces bill to protect military pay, disaster relief in event of government shutdown

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senators Mark Udall (D-Colo.) and Jerry Moran (R-Kan.) introduced bipartisan legislation yesterday to make certain the nation's military families, including National Guard units assisting in disaster recovery, will not have their paychecks delayed in the event of a government shutdown.

The Udall-Moran Military Pay Protection Act is based off of a similar proposal the senators introduced in January.

“The financial well-being and readiness of those serving our country must not suffer due to gridlock on Capitol Hill,” Moran said. “I am hopeful the President and Congress will come together to confront our nation's fiscal challenges instead of continuing to push them off to a future date. As indecision continues, this legislation will give our military members, critical civilian workers and National Guard assisting in disaster relief the certainty they deserve. It is the least we can do for those who give so much.”

“Colorado’s flood victims and military families shouldn’t suffer if Washington gridlock and partisan stalemates lead to a government shutdown," Udall said. “This bipartisan bill will ensure that our troops, critical Defense Department civilian workers and the people they help on a daily basis are not hurt by Washington-style partisanship.”

In the event of a government shutdown, the Udall-Moran bill would:
  • Guarantee uninterrupted funding for domestic National Guard disaster relief and recovery missions;
  • Ensure service members continue to receive their military pay and allowances on time; and
  • Allow paychecks to continue to critical civilian workers deployed in combat zones or doing jobs critical to supporting military operations.