A government shutdown would hurt working families, interrupt vital services, damage our economy, endanger our national security, and force millions of our troops and government employees to work without pay.

WASHINGTON, D.C. – With just four days remaining until a potential government shutdown caused by extreme House Republicans, Representative Scott Peters (CA-50) warned that a shutdown poses serious consequences for San Diego families: 

“A government shutdown is nothing more than a cruel political stunt that would hurt San Diegans and is in fact very fiscally irresponsible,” said Rep. Peters. “San Diego families shouldn’t be forced to pay the price for a few extreme House Republicans’ outlandish demands. This avoidable shutdown would force troops to work without pay, harm small businesses, risk air travel disruptions, and endanger access to food assistance for vulnerable families. There are approximately 64,500 civilian federal employees in San Diego who, along with our uniformed servicemembers, will have their livelihoods directly threatened. A shutdown threatens the safety of all San Diegans, as critical services and federal assistance will be curtailed across the board.

“The hypocrisy of some Republicans is unbelievable,” continued Rep. Peters. “They claim to care about border security, but their demands include cuts to Customs and Border Patrol, and our CBP officers and Coast Guard servicemembers will go unpaid during a shutdown. They claim to care about our nation’s debt and deficits, but every single shutdown has increased our debt and reduced our productivity. They claim fiscal responsibility, but during every shutdown, people are told to stay home from work, then provided back pay in the end. Let’s let federal workers earn their pay and do their jobs.

“I will continue to do everything in my power to keep the government open and protect San Diego families from a costly government shutdown,” concluded Rep. Peters. “It’s time for us to come together, Democrats and reasonable Republicans, and avoid the worst possible outcome for the American people.”

Representative Peters will be available for interviews leading up to and during a government shutdown. Contact Paul Iskajyan to coordinate an interview.

Find a detailed FAQ on what a shutdown would mean for essential services and San Diego families here.

According to new data released by House Budget Committee Democrats, a government shutdown would mean:

• 213,176 active duty and reserve personnel serving our armed forces in California would be forced to work without pay during a shutdown.
• 178,407 people flying through California airports every day would face potential delays and safety concerns due to staffing impacts on TSA agents and air traffic controllers.
• 972,418 people in California would soon lose access to Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) benefits.
• 187,679 federal workers in California would be furloughed or forced to work without pay, in addition to the many employees of businesses with government contracts who could be laid off, furloughed, or see their hours cut.
• Workers at the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) would be sidelined, risking interruptions and delays to the 2,172 food safety, pharmaceutical manufacturing, and other inspections conducted in California last year.
• 5,215,990 Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) beneficiaries in California would lose access to benefits in a prolonged shutdown.
• 38,237,347 people visit national parks in California every year; families who’ve already booked their travel would be turned away from park access, monuments, and museums, causing them to lose their hard-earned money.
• State governments would be forced to pay for federal services like the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program, potentially risking benefits for the 750,247 TANF beneficiaries in California.
• The Small Business Administration would stop processing small business loans, halting a program that provides $4,433,591,900 in funding to small businesses in California every year.
• The Department of Agriculture would be forced to stop processing housing loans, which provide $410,540,063 in funding to help 1,490 families in rural California communities buy homes every year.
• The Department of Agriculture would be forced to stop processing farm loans, which provide $77,037,000 in funding for farmers in California every year.

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