MEDIA RELEASE

Rep. Tulsi Gabbard co-sponsored bipartisan legislation Wednesday to provide back pay for all federal employees who are being furloughed during the government shutdown.

The Federal Employee Retroactive Pay Fairness Act (H.R. 3223) will ensure that federal employees will be paid, regardless of furlough status.

“Our law enforcement officers and civil servants continue to be the victims of partisan games in Congress,” Gabbard said. “Providing back pay is the right thing to do. For years, they have continually been the ‘whipping boy’ for a Congress that has frozen their pay, cut their benefits, and forced them to go on furlough. These are the same hard-working people who keep our streets safe, help our kupuna receive Social Security benefits, and keep essential government services functioning for all of Hawaii’s constituents and visitors.”

Hawaii is home to more than 25,000 federal employees whose pay is suspended under a federal government shutdown. Retroactive pay for “essential” and “non-essential” employees must be approved by Congress.