Lawmakers Withhold Pay Amid Shutdown

The government shutdown has left hundreds of thousands of federal civilian employees unpaid, including more than 150,000 in California, while many members of Congress have withheld, deferred or pledged to donate their paychecks in solidarity. House members were told their paychecks will be delayed until Congress passes a funding bill, and numerous senators and representatives across parties have publicly refused pay during the shutdown. All six members of Kansas’s congressional delegation have voluntarily halted their federal salaries until the impasse is resolved. Vice President J.D. Vance said military personnel would be paid when their payroll is due, but a Senate effort to guarantee longer-term military pay protections failed after Sen. Mitch McConnell objected. Federal employee unions expressed deep frustration at lawmakers’ unwillingness to negotiate and warned against any administration efforts to withhold legally mandated back pay.