The Senate tried again late on Friday to pass legislation to pay federal employees during the ongoing partial government shutdown.
Senator Ron Johnson (R-WI) recently introduced an amendment to his earlier bill, the Shutdown Fairness Act (S. 3012), to pay all federal employees, not just excepted federal employees (those required to work during the shutdown).
The amended bill would also provide pay to military service members during the shutdown.
Johnson’s legislation previously only proposed paying excepted federal employees when it was first introduced. That was enough to keep it from advancing. Democrats wanted to ensure all federal employees were paid.
Senator Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) proposed similar legislation that would pay all federal employees, military service members and government contractors during the shutdown. His legislation, the True Shutdown Fairness Act, also contained a clause to prohibit federal agencies from running RIFs (reduction in force) during the government shutdown.
The opposing viewpoints kept the bills from advancing, however, the Senators were working to reach a compromise.
Johnson said in a speech on the Senate floor on October 23, “Right now, I’d be willing to add furloughed workers because we’re going to pay them anyway […] Would you take my bill, add furloughed workers, say it’s a done deal? Is that something you’d accept here today?”
The American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) endorsed Johnson’s amended legislation and urged Senators to pass it. AFGE National President Everett Kelley wrote:
The bill, as amended, is a significant improvement over the original version, which already received bipartisan support in a Senate vote on October 23. The new bill now covers employees who have been furloughed as well as excepted employees who have been working without pay. It provides no discretion whom to pay or not pay and seeks to end the unfortunate practice where federal workers become political pawns in spending battles between the two parties. Please remember, federal workers have no choice in whether they are furloughed or not.
On Friday afternoon, Senator Gary Peters (D-MI) blocked passage of Johnson’s bill. “I’m concerned that Sen. Johnson’s bill still leaves too much discretion up to President Trump,” Peters said.
Johnson said in a post on X, “Unfortunately, @SenGaryPeters just objected to its passage by unanimous consent. We will give all Democrat Senators a chance to vote on proceeding to the bill later today.”
Johnson also accused Peters of lying about his bill. He told CBS News, “You think the unions would be supporting this thing if we were expanding the presidential authority to fire people? It’s completely silent on that. I come from the private sector. I’m used to dealing with people with integrity, that don’t lie through their teeth. In the U.S. Senate, you’ve got U.S. senators completely misrepresenting things, because apparently they can get away with it … He was just lying on the floor of the Senate here.”
The bill ultimately failed to pass in a Friday afternoon vote in the Senate.
