ATLANTA–Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms said during an interview the city is working on a plan to provide credit union loans to employees of the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) who are going without paychecks as a result of the partial government shutdown.
Meanwhile, U.S. Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross said he doesn’t understand why some furloughed federal workers have turned to food banks and homeless shelters to feed themselves and their families, saying loans are available from credit unions and banks.
In addition, both credit union trade associations have been contacting Congress offering updates on CU efforts nationally to support furloughed workers. CUNA's letter to Congress is here; NAFCU's letter is here. CUToday.info has compiled a list of more than 100 credit unions providing assistance that can be found here.
In Atlanta, Bottoms did not indicate which credit union the city is working with, although Credit Union of Atlanta is chartered to serve city employees. Atlanta Hartsfield International Airport is the busiest in the world and has seen longer passenger lines on occasion as more TSA employees “call out,” otherwise known as calling in sick.
Close to Plan
“We are very close to finalizing a plan to provide some financial support for our TSA workers, adding that the city is working with its credit union “to create some type of fund that will allow us to extend the opportunity for loans to our TSA workers,” Bottoms said on Georgia Public Broadcasting. “You know we’re in uncharted territory. We’re having to come up with a plan in real time as people are experiencing the shutdown.”
In addition to TSA workers, air traffic controllers and Customs officers have also been working without pay since the partial federal shutdown began Dec. 22.
As CUToday.info reported earlier here, Delta Community Credit Union, which serves many TSA employees, has assembled a centralized team to respond to inquiries from members who are affected by the government shutdown. It is offering fee waivers, payment holidays on existing loans and/or expedited personal loans for bridge financing when needed.
Commerce Secretary’s Comments
Separately, during an interview on CNBC, Commerce Secretary Ross said he didn’t understand why unpaid federal workers were looking to food shelters and other sources of help, saying they should simply get loans.
“True, the people might have to pay a little bit of interest,” Ross told CNBC. “But the idea that it’s paycheck or zero is not a really valid idea.”
Ross, whose net worth in 2016 was estimated to be $2.9 billion, also said the partial federal shutdown should not affect the economy.
“Put it in perspective, you’re talking about 800,000 workers,” he said during the interview. “And while I feel sorry for the individuals that have hardship cases, 800,000 workers if they never got their pay — which is not the case, they will eventually get it — but if they never got it, you’re talking about a third of a percent on our GDP. So, it’s not like it’s a gigantic number overall.”