Today, U.S. Congressman Scott Peters (CA-52) voted with a bipartisan majority to pass legislation that provides more than $15 billion for emergency disaster relief, funds the government at current levels through December, and extends the debt ceiling for three months. Rep. Peters released the following statement:

“I am disappointed we are once again funding the government on a temporary basis. I’ve been working across the aisle on the annual defense budget that would make much needed investments in readiness. There is no reason a unified Republican Congress and White House shouldn’t have been able to at least get that across the finish line.

“But this stopgap bill avoids the potentially catastrophic combination of a government shutdown and a default on our debt obligations that would devastate the economy and put Americans out of work. It also provides desperately needed relief to the people of Texas and additional resources for FEMA to respond to Hurricane Irma and the wildfires in the west.

“It is particularly important that we raised the debt ceiling without any misguided attempts to tie that increase to changes or cuts to Social Security and Medicare. I oppose any effort to tie the two together.  We need to work together to make sure that these indispensable programs are around for those paying into them now and for generations to come, and I am strongly opposed to playing politics with these earned benefits that seniors have paid into over a lifetime of hard work.”

“It is our obligation to keep the government open and provide this relief, but moving forward I hope for a more long-term budgeting process that increases community resiliency to disasters, makes the investments in research and education that grow our economy, and gives our military leaders and business community the certainty they need.”