WASHINGTON, D.C.— U.S. Rep. Derek Kilmer on Wednesday called for an end to the partial federal government shutdown and urged Congress to immediately pay members of the Coast Guard.
“The men and women putting their lives on the line for our country shouldn’t pay the price for the failure of leadership in Washington, D.C.,” said Kilmer, whose 6th Congressional District includes the North Olympic Peninsula.
“Our entire country counts on the Coast Guard to protect our maritime borders and keep us safe. In Washington state, folks who go out boating or fishing for work or for recreation do so with the peace of mind that comes with knowing the Coast Guard is keeping the watch and is ready to assist them,” Kilmer said.
On Tuesday, members of the Coast Guard did not receive their regularly scheduled paychecks because of the federal government shutdown, which, at 27 days, is the longest in the nation’s history.
It is the first time in the nation’s history that service members in any branch of the U.S. Armed Forces have not been paid during a lapse in government appropriations, according to Admiral Karl Schultz, the Commandant of the Coast Guard.
The Coast Guard maintains stations at Port Angeles, Neah Bay and Quillayute River as well as Air Station/Sector Field Office in Port Angeles. Port Angeles also is the homeport of the Adelie, the Active, the Swordfish, the Wahoo and the Cuttyhunk. The Osprey is homeported in Port Townsend.
Kilmer said that many Coast Guard members and their families “make personal sacrifices to keep us safe. Serving without pay should not be one of them.”
Kilmer has co-sponsored three pieces of legislation that would protect the Coast Guard from the government shutdown.
He is a co-sponsor of the Pay Our Coast Guard Act (H.R. 350), the Pay Our Coast Guard Parity Act (H.R. 367), and an appropriations bill (H.R. 421) that would fund the Coast Guard while the government is shut down.
He also co-wrote a bill with U.S. Sen. Brian Schatz, D-Hawaii, that would protect federal workers from eviction, foreclosure and other negative financial consequences of working without pay.
“There should be action to improve security — not just at the southern border but at our ports of entry,” Kilmer said.
“But progress on that is hindered while the government is shut down.
“It is time for the Senate and the president to reopen the government by passing the bipartisan agreements currently on the table that could reopen the government right now so our service members receive their paychecks.”
In the statement to the men and women of the Coast Guard, Schultz said in part: “The strength of our service has, and always will be, our people.
“You have proven time and again the ability to rise above adversity. Stay the course, stand the watch and serve with pride. You are not, and will not, be forgotten.”
More than 2,600 people serve in the Coast Guard in Washington and more than 45,000 nationwide are now serving without pay in an active, reserve or civilian capacity.
