Rep. James Walkinshaw, D-Va., is leading a group of House Democrats in a legislative proposal to pay all federal employees, service members, and contractors during any federal shutdowns in fiscal year 2026.
Walkinshaw and six other Democrats introduced the True Shutdown Fairness Act as the federal government enters the third day of its second government shutdown in FY 2026.
Lawmakers include Reps. Jamie Raskin, D-Md., Eleanor Holmes Norton, D-D.C., Don Beyer, D-Va., Kweisi Mfume, D-Md., Suhas Subramanyam, D-Va., and Eugene Vindman, D-Va.
The first shutdown lasted a record 43 days and ended in November after Republicans and Democrats agreed on a short-term funding package. That package funded some government activities and departments through the end of the fiscal year, though most agencies ran out of appropriations on Jan. 31.
“Federal workers and service members should never be used as leverage in Republicans’ shutdown standoffs, and the Trump administration should never be able to use a shutdown to inflict harm on our federal workforce, as we have seen,” Walkinshaw said in a statement.
Walkinshaw explained that the bill would keep paying federal employees during any shutdown and would prevent any reductions in force – also known as layoffs – during lapses in federal funding in the current fiscal year.
During the last shutdown, the Trump administration attempted to lay off at least 4,000 federal employees – though most of those cuts were reversed by a preliminary injunction. The White House also warned during the last shutdown that furloughed federal employees may not be guaranteed back pay, contradicting guidance from the Office of Management and Budget in September that said all furloughed employees would be paid retroactively.
Many federal employees are once again furloughed or working without pay while Republicans and Democrats have entered an appropriations stalemate tied to an unresolved Department of Homeland Security funding bill.
Under the Democrats’ legislative proposal, agencies would have to issue pay on regular schedules and provide pay within seven days of enactment if the bill is passed during a shutdown.
The bill also extends protections to federal contractors by directing agencies to reimburse companies for reasonable shutdown-related costs, including paying contract employees who are furloughed, have hours reduced, or must use paid leave. Agencies would adjust contract prices to cover those costs, even if existing contracts would otherwise prohibit such payments.
“Since the last government shutdown, federal employees and contractors have continued to face uncertainty despite the essential work they perform every day,” Mfume said in a statement. “These workers keep our government functioning, and they deserve stability and fairness when shutdowns occur.”