IRVINE, CA – Congresswoman Katie Porter (CA-45) today held her first official town hall as a member of Congress, where she heard from constituents who have been hurt by the government shutdown. With the shutdown entering a second month, Porter also released a new congressional report showing how the shutdown harms families in the 45^th district.

“The community members who spoke to me at my town hall about the shutdown could not have been more clear—it is past time to get the government open,” Porter said. “My new report shows what families in the 45^th district have already felt—the government shutdown has closed some of the most critical services that the people of our district rely on. I’m going to continue fighting to get government working for Orange County families as soon as possible.”

In a new congressional report released today, Porter documents the ways in which unavailable government services hurt families in California’s 45^th district. The shutdown threatens the solvency of critical federal programs like housing assistance, delays federal services like the processing of tax returns and income verifications, and shutters consumer safety programs like the Do Not Call registry.

Read the full report HERE.

Porter has made reopening government and helping families hurt by the shutdown a top priority. Her first letters as a member of Congress requested that the country’s largest banks and credit card companies provide help to federal employees harmed by the government shutdown. Specifically, Porter pressed lenders to waive late fees and interest, extend payment due dates, suppress negative credit reporting, and freeze eviction or foreclosure proceedings until the end of the shutdown. Porter’s request would assist families on the brink, as one missed paycheck can set off a cascade of late fees and credit report hits with lasting consequences, even if these employees receive backpay.

As a professor of bankruptcy and consumer protection attorney, Porter has long been an advocate for families navigating financial instability. Last week, she announced that she will serve on the House Financial Services Committee, where she will make promoting affordable homeownership a top priority. In 2012, then-California Attorney General Kamala Harris appointed Porter to be the state’s independent watchdog against the banks, and she secured over $18 billion for California homeowners. In 2010, Porter helped pass consumer protections protecting families from abusive credit card practices and excessive fees.

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