[Congressional Record Volume 159, Number 136 (Friday, October 4, 2013)]
[House]
[Page H6242]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




          PAY OUR GUARDSMEN AND CIVILIAN DEFENSE PERSONNEL ACT

  (Mr. AUSTIN SCOTT of Georgia asked and was given permission to 
address the House for 1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. AUSTIN SCOTT of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, the fact is that I and most 
of the Members of this House have voted now for five different measures 
that would have paid our Nation's civilian defense workforce and all of 
our guardsmen and reservists. The first of those bills passed this 
House with overwhelming bipartisan support in July, Mr. Speaker--July. 
Unfortunately, the Senate and the President have refused to pass four 
of the five measures.
  And in the Pay Our Military Act, the President unilaterally deemed 
many of the civilian workforce and our National Guard nonessential to 
our national defense. I'm sorry, Mr. Speaker, but what the President is 
doing is wrong. The civilian workers that design, build, and maintain 
our planes, our ships, and our infrastructure and support our 
warfighters in everything that they do are essential and should not be 
furloughed simply because the President chooses to do so.
  Every member of our National Guard and Reserve stand ready to defend 
our Nation, and they should be paid while we wait on Harry Reid and the 
President to agree to negotiate. That's why I've introduced the Pay Our 
Guardsmen and Civilian Defense Personnel Act. Our national security 
depends on these men and women, and they should be paid while we're 
waiting on the President and Senator Reid simply to do their job and 
agree to negotiate with us.
  I urge my colleagues to support this measure.

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