The Senate must vote on as many nominees for agency positions as possible before the end of the year, a coalition of labor, government and public interest groups said in a Dec. 1 letter.
The Fix the Senate Now coalition – made up of 33 groups – wrote to Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., urging him to confirm as many of the more than 150 nominees still awaiting confirmation before a new Congress convenes in 2015.
“Many offices responsible for implementing and enforcing our laws are vacant. This threatens to undermine the functioning of government. At the same time, our courts are understaffed, delaying justice for Americans across the country,” the groups wrote in the letter.
Those awaiting Senate action include the administration’s replacement for Attorney General Eric Holder – federal prosecutor Loretta Lynch – as well as nominees for the National Labor Relations Board, the commissioner of the Social Security Administration and other high-level openings.
“We urge you and your colleagues to fulfill the duties of the Senate, stay in session and vote on as many nominees as possible before the end of the 113th Congress,” the groups wrote.
The groups include the NAACP, the National LGBTQ Task Force, the AFL-CIO and the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees.
