Cummings Issues Statement Supporting Passage of Bill to Pay Furloughed Workers

Washington, DC—Congressman Elijah E. Cummings, the Ranking Member of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, issued the following statement after the House of Representatives voted 407 to 0 to pass H.R. 3302, The Federal Employee Retroactive Pay Fairness Act, introduced by Rep. Jim Moran (D-VA), and on which Cummings was an original cosponsor:

"I am pleased that the House of Representatives – including all of my Republican colleagues – voted unanimously to pay our nation's hard working federal employees who are currently furloughed through no fault of their own. I am disappointed, however, that this action is even necessary because Republican House leaders are allowing a faction of their party to take our government hostage in an ideological crusade to overturn the law of the land, return the keys to insurance companies, and take away health insurance from tens of millions of people. Now that my colleagues on the other side of the aisle have voted to pass this bill today, I hope they will truly stand with federal workers and with the American people by immediately bringing a clean continuing resolution to the floor to put our entire federal government – including all federal employees – back to work."