Overview
- The Senate, which advanced the plan 99-0 on Wednesday, approved it by voice vote Thursday to pause senators’ pay during any shutdown.
- The rule directs the Secretary of the Senate to hold salaries in escrow during a lapse and pay them out once the government reopens.
- It applies only to senators and does not require House or presidential approval, and a similar House measure has not been adopted.
- The policy takes effect the day after the November 3, 2026 general election to comply with the 27th Amendment’s delay on pay changes.
- Backers frame the move as shared sacrifice after 43-day and 76-day shutdowns that left TSA and other workers unpaid, and related bills would ensure worker pay or automatically extend funding.