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PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) – On day three of the government shutdown, Senator Ron Wyden (D-OR) helped introduce a bill on Friday to support federal workers experiencing financial hardship while Congress is stalled.
“This shutdown orchestrated by Donald Trump and congressional Republicans unfortunately leaves much pain to choose from when it comes to impact for Oregonians,” Sen. Wyden said. “The Emergency Relief for Federal Workers Act would help tens of thousands of federal workers throughout rural, urban and suburban Oregon bridge the gap to cover necessities like rent and groceries as they weather the consequences of this senseless shutdown.”
During past shutdowns, many federal employees turned to their Thrift Savings Plan retirement accounts to cover bills, according to Oregon’s senior senator, noting there are penalties for withdrawing these funds and barriers to recontributing funds once the government reopens.
However, the Wyden-backed Emergency Relief for Federal Workers Act would allow federal workers to withdraw funds from their TSP without being penalized if the shutdown is prolonged and would allow funds to be recontributed later.
Current law allows TSP participants to withdraw funds because of financial hardship and requires federal employees to certify under penalties of perjury that they are facing financial hardship and that the requested withdrawal amount does not exceed the dollar amount of the hardship.
The bill would also waive a 10% early distribution penalty for federal workers who withdraw funds for financial hardship. Currently, federal employees who are under the age of 59 are subject to the withdrawal penalty.
While the bill would eliminate the 10% penalty, it would still require federal workers to pay taxes on the funds they withdraw.
Another provision of the bill would allow federal workers to access TSP loans. Current law does not allow TSP loans if a shutdown is anticipated to last over 30 days. The bill would also suspend TSP loan payments during shutdowns, deduct outstanding loan payments from back pay provided after shutdowns and ban missed loan payments from becoming taxable distributions during shutdowns.
The bill is led by Senator Tim Kaine (D-Va.) with cosponsors including Sens. Wyden, Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Chris Coons (D-Del.), Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) and Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii).
The legislation comes on day three of the government shutdown after Friday saw another failed Senate vote of 54-44 — falling short of the 60 votes required to end a filibuster and pass the legislation, as reported by the Associated Press.
“All around the country right now, real pain is being endured by real people because the Democrats have decided to play politics,” said House Speaker Mike Johnson on Friday.
Amid the shutdown, Democrats are demanding that Congress extend healthcare benefits, AP notes, as Republicans are not committing to anything before the government is reopened. According to AP, Democrats are aiming to extend tax credits that saw a boost during the COVID pandemic in health care plans in marketplaces set up by the Affordable Care Act.
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Michaela Bourgeois
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