Sponsors (38)
Introduced February 2, 2026 by James R. Walkinshaw · Last progress February 2, 2026
The bill protects federal, D.C., and military pay and prevents layoffs during FY2026 funding lapses—reducing economic harm to workers and ensuring timely payments—at the cost of higher taxpayer expenses, added administrative burdens, and reduced congressional leverage and agency flexibility.
Federal (including D.C.) employees and active-duty/reserve service members who were employed/enlisted before a lapse keep regular pay and benefits and are protected from forced layoffs during any FY2026 funding lapse, reducing income and job instability.
Agencies can automatically access Treasury funds to make timely payments during funding lapses, providing faster, predictable relief so paychecks arrive on regular pay dates or within 7 days for ongoing lapses.
Contractor employees whose work is halted by a shutdown can receive compensation through contractor reimbursements and price adjustments, reducing income loss for contractor workers.
Taxpayers face higher federal outlays and possibly increased short-term personnel costs because the Treasury funds payments and agencies must retain employees during FY2026 lapses.
Automatic payments reduce Congress's leverage to pressure timely appropriations, which could encourage longer or more frequent funding delays and weaken incentives to resolve budget standoffs promptly.
Agencies and contractors must document and process reimbursements and price adjustments, creating administrative burdens and potential delays in payments to contractor workers and payroll processing.
Based on analysis of 3 sections of legislative text.
Requires automatic FY2026 pay and contractor reimbursements during any lapse in regular appropriations, bars RIFs during those lapses, and limits administrative leave.
Requires federal agencies to continue paying civilian and contract employees during any lapse in regular appropriations for fiscal year 2026 and to reimburse contractors for reasonable costs caused by funding lapses. It also bars agencies from proposing or carrying out permanent staff cuts during those lapses and limits administrative leave for employees to 10 work days per calendar year.