{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://davids.house.gov/media/press-releases/davids-meets-furloughed-federal-workers-impacted-ongoing-government-shutdown", "Davids Meets with Furloughed Federal Workers Impacted by Ongoing Government Shutdown", "2025-10-16", "2025", "2025-10", "Democrat", "House", "KS", "Sharice Davids", "D000629", "davids.house.gov", "davids", "https://davids.house.gov/media/press-releases", "scraper", "KANSAS CITY, MO \u2014 Today, Representative Sharice Davids met with federal employees affected by the ongoing government shutdown, including several who have been furloughed without pay. The discussion centered on how the shutdown is straining Kansas families, disrupting local economies, and threatening essential public services. Davids shared her urgency to find a bipartisan solution to open the government as soon as possible.\n\n\u201cMy mom, an Army veteran, raised my brothers and me on her own. If she had missed even one paycheck, it could\u2019ve meant choosing between keeping the lights on or putting food on the table,\u201d said Davids. \u201cThat\u2019s the reality so many federal workers in the Kansas City area are facing right now \u2014 and they shouldn\u2019t be caught in the crossfire of D.C. politics. These workers keep our communities running, from processing veterans\u2019 benefits to keeping our skies safe. I\u2019m committed to working across the aisle to reopen the government and protect the livelihoods of Kansas families.\u201d\n\nFurloughed federal workers who participated in the conversation included employees from Social Security Administration, Internal Revenue Service, Department of Housing and Urban Development, Environmental Protection Agency, and Department of Labor, each sharing how the shutdown has affected their families and workplaces. Representatives from National Treasury Employees Union (NTEU) and American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) also participated.\n\nEarlier this year, Davids convened a discussion with federal workers who were laid off due to the Trump Administration's Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) initiatives, led by Elon Musk. The conversation shed light on the personal and community impacts of the substantial federal workforce reductions currently underway.\n\n\u201cThe shutdown has added anxiety and fear to a year that has already been full of those two things,\u201d said Kevin McCarthy, Legislative and Political Coordinator, AFGE Local 3960. \u201cBetween the fork email, the Deferred Resignation Program, and the constant threat of layoffs and budgetary cuts, it has been a stressful year to say the least. I\u2019ve had to take a deep look at my finances during this shutdown and cut back on some things. It has also been stressful for myself and my wife because there seems to be no clear end in sight.\u201d\n\n\u201cHard-working public servants are struggling every day with anxiety and uncertainty as we feel like we are being declared enemies of the people, and we are facing unprecedented threats to our well-being,\u201d said Daniel Scharpenburg, 1st Vice President, NTEU Chapter 66.\n\nKansas City, a major hub for federal employment, has been experiencing widespread impacts from federal layoffs for months. The federal government is the Kansas City metropolitan area\u2019s largest employer, with approximately 30,000 federal workers. These furloughs affect Kansas City families, local economies, and the critical services federal employees provide to the public.\n\nDavids is pushing for a bipartisan agreement to reopen the government and protect Kansans from the consequences of partisan gridlock in D.C. She recently announced her support for two bills: one to guarantee pay for aviation workers and another to ensure active-duty service members continue receiving their paychecks. Kansas is home to more than 25,000 federal employees and more than 21,000 active-duty service members.", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-06T19:32:54Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://davids.house.gov/media/press-releases/davids-meets-furloughed-federal-workers-impacted-ongoing-government-shutdown"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 1.722239889204502, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}