Waters Opposes Republicans’ Unacceptable Short-Term Funding Bill
Measure Ignores a Host of Critical Issues including Ex-Im, Flint‎

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-CA), Ranking Member of the Committee on Financial Services, issued the following statement on Republicans’ continuing resolution (CR) that would fund the government until December:

“Republicans have proposed a continuing resolution to fund our government and services to the American people that is simply unacceptable. This CR is an insult to the people of Flint, Mich., where thousands of children have been poisoned by lead in their drinking water and many still lack safe water. Moreover, while this CR provides much needed short-term funding for the people of Baton Rouge, La., the long-term needs of these flood victims remain unmet. I saw the devastation caused by this historic flooding first hand, and we must do more to help residents and businesses get back on their feet.

“As Ranking Member of the Financial Services Committee, I am deeply concerned that the bill would not restore the Export-Import Bank’s ability to support the full range of American businesses who rely on its services. Last year, overwhelming majorities in both the House and the Senate voted to reauthorize the Bank, yet the Republican-led Senate Banking Committee continues to block a nominee to the Bank’s Board of Directors, thereby denying the Bank the necessary quorum to approve larger transactions which support thousands of U.S. jobs. Consequently, 30 transactions worth more than $20 billion are in limbo, preventing U.S. companies from competing with global competitors. I urge my colleagues to use this measure as an opportunity to bypass this obstruction and help our businesses flourish. Any further delay in resolving the Bank’s quorum issue will continue to put the security of U.S. workers and their families at risk.

“The real winners in this CR are the billionaires and special interests for Wall Street and others who want to keep their contributions to our political system in the dark. They will benefit from a provision that would prevent the Securities and Exchange Commission from requiring our largest corporations to disclose their political spending. This CR makes it clear what the priorities of House Republicans really are.”

###