Barr, a Republican, may be laying the blame for the shutdown that began last week at the feet of Democrats, but he says he has a solution to prevent the furloughing of hundreds of thousands of workers and chaos for people who rely on government services the next time Congress reaches a funding impasse.
Under the End Government Shutdowns Act, if Congress failed to pass regular appropriations on time, an automatic continuing resolution would kick in, keeping federal agencies funded at 99 percent of the prior year's funding level for 30 days. If Congress still could not agree on a new budget, funding would be reduced by an additional 1 percent every 30 days until a budget is passed.
A 2019 report in the U.S. Senate put the cost of the 2013, 2018, and 2019 shutdowns at $4 billion
Barr said the events "undermine confidence in our institutions, rattle our economy, and send the wrong message to our adversaries abroad."