Bill > HR1973

This bill requires Members of Congress to have their annual pay reduced if either a government shutdown occurs or the public debt limit is reached. Specifically, for each 24-hour period during a government shutdown or debt limit crisis, a Member of Congress's annual pay will be proportionally reduced by one day's worth of salary. The bill has special provisions for the 119th Congress, where instead of immediately reducing pay, the payroll administrators for the House and Senate will withhold the equivalent amount and hold it in escrow, which will be released at the end of the congressional term to comply with constitutional restrictions on varying congressional compensation. For future Congresses after the November 2026 general election, the pay reduction will be direct. A government shutdown is defined as a lapse in appropriations for any federal agency due to failure to pass a regular appropriations bill or continuing resolution, while reaching the public debt limit means the federal government is unable to make payments or meet obligations because it has hit the legal borrowing cap. The Secretary of the Treasury is required to assist congressional payroll administrators in implementing these provisions.

Government Affairs

https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/house-bill/1973/all-info