Government Funding Deal Would Prevent CBP Furloughs

We are only six days from the end of the 2020 fiscal year and Congress is trying to complete a funding plan that prevents a government shutdown on Oct. 1. The House has passed a continuing resolution to extend current levels of government funding through Dec. 11, and it awaits action in the Senate. It must be signed by the president by Sept. 30 to avoid a shutdown. Our sources on Capitol Hill tell us that there is little appetite for a shutdown so close to an election, so NTEU will continue to urge lawmakers to finish the continuing resolution – as well as full-year funding for the remainder of FY 2021 - as soon as possible. NTEU has been warning Congress for weeks that the COVID-19-related decrease in travel volume caused a huge reduction in user fee collections that fund 8,000 CBPO positions. The continuing resolution does not include supplemental funding to cover the shortfall, but it does include a provision to allow additional funding to agencies as needed in order to prevent furloughs, as long as the agency takes all necessary actions to reduce or defer non-personnel-related administrative expenses. If signed into law, NTEU believes CBP can use this provision to protect CBPO jobs.