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Norton Provision Ensures D.C. Government Will Stay Open if Federal Government Shuts Down Saturday

December 6, 2017

WASHINGTON, D.C.—Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC) assured District of Columbia residents that the D.C. government would remain open if the federal government shuts down on Saturday, when the fiscal year 2018 continuing resolution expires, because of a critical provision she got included in the fiscal year 2017 omnibus appropriations bill. The provision allows D.C. to spend under its local fiscal year 2018 budget during a federal government shutdown in fiscal year 2018, subject to the terms and conditions of the fiscal year 2017 omnibus. Norton has gotten the D.C. shutdown exemption included in each spending bill since the last federal government shutdown, in 2013.

"The 2013 federal government shutdown was uniquely stressful for D.C., which was forced to allocate contingency funds in order to stay open and avoid getting caught in the congressionally-inflicted snafu," Norton said. "I made Congress understand the needless problem federal shutdowns cause D.C., with no benefit to the federal government or the American people. Since the 2013 shutdown, I have successfully included a provision in annual spending bills to remove the threat of a D.C. government shutdown, even if the federal government shuts down. Our city has done its job and created a balanced budget. The District should not be the victim of a congressional debacle when it has done the right thing."