Elfreth Statement on Senate Deal

ANNAPOLIS, MD - Today, Congresswoman Sarah Elfreth (MD-03)released the following statement on the Republican Senate deal.

"Our federal workers, military, families who rely on SNAP, and government contractors have borne the brunt of this government shutdown. I am grateful for their service and for all the ways that our community has come together and stepped up to protect our most vulnerable neighbors.

"The House of Representatives has only been in session in Washington for 12 of the last 100 days. Speaker Johnson intentionally left the House scattered across the country and has made no effort to reach a budget deal that works for American families. My position throughout this shutdown has always been that we can and must reach a bipartisan agreement to reopen the government, protect our federal workforce, and protect the health care of millions of Americans. This deal doesn't do that.

"A handshake agreement for a future vote on health care in the Senate, but not in the House - after neighbors begin to see their health care costs skyrocket this month - is simply inadequate for the working families I represent. The President has also used this shutdown to illegally freeze SNAP benefits and take food off the plates of hungry children to push Democrats to abandon the health care fight. American families deserve relief and a government that works to lower their costs now.

"Since the beginning of the shutdown, I've heard from thousands of constituents across the Third District, including many federal workers, who believe this Administration must be held accountable. I worked with my colleagues to minimize the burden on our federal workforce, but this Administration used the shutdown as pretext to continue illegally attacking and firing our hard-working civil servants. As the daughter of two civil servants, I will always stand with our federal employees. "

During the shutdown, Elfreth introduced the Help Federal Employees During Shutdowns (Help FEDS) Actand the Shutdown Student Loans for Feds Act to alleviate the burden on federal employees. Elfreth stood with federal workers at the BWI airport, pushed back on the President's illegal withholding of SNAP benefits, and spoke out against the Administration's lawless mass firings. She held numerous live town hallsto hear directly from constituents, both virtually and in person. She withheldher Congressional salary in solidarity with the millions of federal workers going without pay and launched a comprehensive resource guidefor Marylanders affected by the government shutdown.

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