Chairman Scott to GSA: Delayed Support for Biden Transition Team Will Have “Devastating Consequences”
WASHINGTON – Today, Education and Labor Committee Chairman Robert C. “Bobby” Scott (VA-03) sent a letter to the General Services Administration (GSA) Administrator Emily Murphy urging the GSA to grant the Biden-Harris Transition Team access to critical information, services, and resources.
“Our country is facing an unprecedented global pandemic that is killing 2,000 Americans per day, and any further delay in an effective government response will have devastating consequences,” wrote Chairman Scott. “As you are surely aware, an effective government response during this time requires an effective transition of government.”
In the letter, Chairman Scott notes that the GSA’s failure to make the ascertainment designation under the Presidential Transition Act and allow the presidential transition to begin compromises the incoming Biden administration’s ability to implement testing and treatment for COVID-19. Relatedly, the continued delay in sharing critical information with the Biden-Harris Transition Team endangers the lives of our frontline workers and stalls the implementation of workplace safety measures. In the education space, GSA’s lack of response is preventing the incoming Department of Education from adequately supporting schools, students, and educators.
“The urgent needs of the country must not be subordinated to political gamesmanship. As a result of the pandemic, any delay in a peaceful and effective transition will have catastrophic consequences on the safety and well-being of the United States and its people,” Chairman Scott continued. “As Administrator of the General Services Administration, it is your responsibility to follow the law and make the ascertainment designation without any further delay.”
Chairman Scott also notes that GSA’s failure to support a timely and orderly transition is antithetical to the overwhelmingly bipartisan Presidential Transition Act.
To read the full letter, click here.
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