Furlough pay would negate shutdown savings
J. Scott Applewhite/Associated Press
The normally busy US Capitol rotunda was empty on Monday as the government shutdown entered a second week.
WASHINGTON — The conservatives who propelled the first federal shutdown in 17 years have argued they are fighting for smaller, less costly, less-intrusive government. But a vote over the weekend to grant back pay to furloughed federal workers would negate any savings from a government shutdown and is more likely to raise net costs to taxpayers, according to government and outside estimates.
The move highlights another peculiarity of shutting down the government: under Washington’s political calculus, sending employees home for an indefinite period does not save money.
Instead, if the Senate agrees and President Obama signs the legislation as expected, it will mean hundreds of thousands of workers will get what amounts to extra paid holidays — which they didn’t want — even as millions of Americans are unable to visit national monuments, process loans, or obtain other services.
“The public doesn’t have a whole lot of respect for the efficiency of the federal government,” said G. William Hoagland, senior vice president at the Bipartisan Policy Center who served as budget director for former Republican Senate majority leader Bill Frist. “Well, they should have even less when they’re getting paid for not doing anything.”
