U.S. Rep. Blaine Luetkemeyer (MO-9) today supported the Government Shutdown Prevention Act, which would provide $106.5 billion in savings compared to the president’s Fiscal Year 2011 budget request and would, in the event of a government shutdown, prevent lawmakers and the president from being paid for the duration of the government shutdown. 

   The cuts were included in H.R. 1, a bill that passed the House in February to provide discretionary funding for government functions for the duration of Fiscal Year 2011. The Government Shutdown Prevention Act passed the House 221-202. 

    “The American people have demanded that Washington cut spending, and the House did so by bringing forth a bill that was $100 billion below the president’s request for Fiscal Year 2011. I am proud to support a bill that would allow those cuts to go into effect, despite the political games that are being played by Senate Democrats,” Luetkemeyer said. “I also support the bill’s call for a halt on our salaries in Congress and the president’s salary in the event of a government shutdown. Americans need to hold us accountable for the failures of some to present a fiscally responsible budget to the taxpayers who finance it.” 

     Since the passage of H.R. 1, two additional short-term continuing budget resolutions were approved by Congress and signed into law in order to provide temporary funding for discretionary government operations.  The first short-term bill was a two-week continuing budget resolution, which would cut $4 billion from FY 2010 spending levels and eliminate funding for eight government programs.  The second short-term continuing resolution, which expires April 8, provided three weeks of discretionary funding and cut an additional $6 billion from FY 2010 levels while eliminating or reducing funding for 25 government programs.  

Specifically, the Government Shutdown Prevention Act asks the Senate to reconsider the long-term fiscal 2011 spending bill (H.R. 1) that was subsequently rejected by the Senate. The new bill would provide that the original measure would become law, thereby funding the government for the remainder of the fiscal year, if the Senate did not pass legislation by the April 8 deadline. It also would prevent members of Congress and President Obama from being paid for the duration of any government shutdown that lasts more than 24 hours.