The Senate on Thursday moved to bar senators from being paid during government shutdowns.
Pushed by Louisiana Republican Sen. John Kennedy, the measure took on renewed significance within the wake of two history-making shutdowns in current months: A 43-day federal government shutdown in 2025 and a record-breaking 76-day shutdown of the Department of Homeland Security earlier this 12 months.
The measure doesn’t want approval from the House nor the president and is binding for senators starting in November after the midterm elections.
Senators permitted the decision by voice vote, regardless of some questions as to whether or not it was constitutional. The Constitution solely states that lawmakers are to be paid from the Treasury, with no exceptions talked about.
But Kennedy has maintained the decision shouldn’t be unconstitutional and didn’t count on any challenges from his colleagues on these grounds.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer was bullish on the measure’s prospects forward of the vote. “Yes, I’m going to vote for it, and I think it has a lot of support,” the New York Democrat mentioned Wednesday.
Speaker Mike Johnson has not indicated whether or not the House will undertake the same measure utilized to its personal members’ salaries within the future.
“We’ll have to find out,” he beforehand advised reporters. “I mean, the House has some ideas on that as well, so we’ll see what consensus we can build on.”