Rep. Chip Roy (R-TX) asked the chief administrative officer of the House to withhold his pay during the impending government shutdown.
“Due to the failure of this God forsaken town to address either its spending addiction or the manmade crisis at our southern border, a partial federal shutdown now seems inevitable,” Roy said in a statement. “Therefore I will be instructing the Chief Administrative Officer of the House to withhold my pay until an acceptable appropriations agreement is reached.”
During a government shutdown, federal employees are not paid, some are furloughed and then receive back pay, while others who are deemed “essential employees” must work without being paid and then also receive back pay.
“I have been informed that despite a lapse of appropriations and current government shutdown, Members of Congress will continue receiving their salary,” Roy continued. “Please withhold my pay until an appropriations agreement has taken effect.”
From Washington Examiner:
However, it is unclear if Roy has the authority to reject being paid as lawmakers’ salaries are determined by law and cannot be waived or changed. According to the Congressional Research Service, members must receive pay during a shutdown, but nothing stops them from “accepting the salary and then, as several have done, donate part or all of it back to the United States Treasury.”
