Senator Katie Britt requests pay be withheld until government shutdown ends

MONTGOMERY, Ala. (WHNT) — Sen. Katie Britt (R-AL) has requested that her pay be withheld until the government shutdown is officially over.

Sen. Britt made a social media post on X, formely known as Twitter, that states the following:

“Since Democrats have decided to shut down the government—furloughing our federal workers and withholding pay from our troops—I have requested the Financial Clerk of the Senate to do the same with my pay. I encourage my Democratic colleagues to do the same.”

— Sen. Katie Britt (R-AL)

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You can read Britt’s official request to Financial Clerk of United States Senate, Ted Ruckner below:

Since 1983, congressional salaries have been paid from a permanent appropriation, which is not dependent on annual funding bills. This means their paychecks are issued regardless of any lapses in government funding.

While some lawmakers have voluntarily requested that their pay be withheld during past shutdowns, they still legally receive their compensation unless they take this voluntary action. 

The Congressional Budget Office estimates that roughly 750,000 federal employees could be furloughed each day of a shutdown, with the total daily cost of their compensation at roughly $400 million.

The most recent US government shutdown occurred from December 22, 2018, to January 25, 2019, and was the longest in US history, lasting 35 days.