Burns: Stop congressional pay during government shutdown

‘You don’t get paid when you don’t do your job – so why should Congress?’

Rep. Frank Burns December 27, 2018 | 4:34 PM

HARRISBURG, Dec. 27 – In response to the ongoing government shutdown in Washington, D.C., state Rep. Frank Burns is calling for a halt in pay for members of Congress until the showdown is resolved.

Currently, 800,000 federal workers across the country are going without paychecks, while elected members of the U.S. House and Senate continue to get paid.

“You don’t get paid when you don’t do your job – so why should Congress?” Burns asked. “I’ve always tried to lead by example. That’s why I voluntarily refused my paycheck when Pennsylvania failed to pass an on-time budget. I join my former state House colleague, Pennsylvania Auditor General Eugene DePasquale, in calling on Congress to do the same.”

Burns has gone without a paycheck as long as the state budget is unfinished, notably during the nine-month impasse of 2015-16, because of a strong belief that legislators should set an example.

“It is time for both Republicans and Democrats in Congress to come together on border security. Right now, the millionaires running the federal government are more concerned about one-upping each other and playing politics than considering the disastrous effects their actions have on workers and our nation’s economy. Pennsylvanians – and all Americans – deserve much better than this.”

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