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[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 3168 Placed on Calendar Senate (PCS)]
<DOC>
Calendar No. 267
119th CONGRESS
1st Session
S. 3168
To appropriate funds for pay and allowances of Federal employees,
contract employees, and members of the Armed Forces during a lapse in
appropriations, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
November 9, 2025
Mr. Johnson (for himself, Mr. Cotton, Mr. Crapo, Mr. Lankford, Mr.
Risch, Mr. Sullivan, and Mr. Scott of Florida) introduced the following
bill; which was read the first time
November 10, 2025
Read the second time and placed on the calendar
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To appropriate funds for pay and allowances of Federal employees,
contract employees, and members of the Armed Forces during a lapse in
appropriations, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Shutdown Fairness Act''.
SEC. 2. APPROPRIATIONS.
(a) Definitions.--In this section--
(1) the term ``agency''--
(A) means each authority of the executive,
legislative, or judicial branch of the Government of
the United States; and
(B) includes each element of the District of
Columbia public employer, as defined in section 1341(c)
of title 31, United States Code;
(2) the term ``contractor'' includes a contractor at any
tier;
(3) the term ``covered contract employee'', with respect to
a contractor of an agency--
(A) means an employee of the contractor who--
(i) provides support to an employee
described in paragraph (4)(A); and
(ii) is required to perform work during a
lapse in regular appropriations with respect to
the agency to which the employee of the
contractor provides support, as determined by
the head of that agency; and
(B) only includes an individual described in
subparagraph (A) who was an employee of a contractor
on, or had accepted an offer of employment with the
contractor on or before, the day before the date on
which the applicable lapse in regular appropriations
began;
(4) the term ``covered employee''--
(A) means each employee of an agency, without
regard to whether, during the period beginning on
October 1, 2025, and ending on the date of enactment of
this Act--
(i) the head of that agency determined that
the individual was an excepted employee or an
employee performing emergency work; or
(ii) the individual was subject to
furlough;
(B) includes--
(i) a covered individual contractor of an
agency;
(ii) a member of the Armed Forces on active
duty; and
(iii) a member of a reserve component who,
during a lapse in regular appropriations with
respect to the applicable agency, performs
active service or inactive duty training; and
(C) only includes an individual described in
subparagraph (A) or (B) who was an employee,
contractor, or member on, or had accepted an offer of
employment with the agency, agreed to become a
contractor of the agency, or had enlisted in or
accepted an appointment to the Armed Forces (including
a reserve component) on or before, the day before the
date on which the applicable lapse in regular
appropriations began;
(5) the term ``covered individual contractor'', with
respect to an agency, means an individual who is a contractor
of the agency who--
(A) provides support to an employee described in
paragraph (4)(A); and
(B) is required to perform work during a lapse in
regular appropriations with respect to the agency to
which the individual provides support, as determined by
the head of that agency;
(6) the term ``lapse in regular appropriations'', with
respect to an agency, means any period during which interim or
full-year appropriations for the applicable fiscal year are not
in effect for the agency; and
(7) the term ``standard employee compensation'' means, with
respect to a covered employee or covered contract employee, the
standard rate of basic pay, allowances, pay differentials,
benefits, and other payments otherwise payable on a regular
basis to the covered employee or covered contract employee.
(b) Appropriations.--
(1) In general.--For fiscal year 2026, and any fiscal year
thereafter, for any lapse in regular appropriations with
respect to an agency, there are appropriated to the head of the
agency, out of any money in the Treasury not otherwise
appropriated, such sums as are necessary to provide--
(A) standard employee compensation to covered
employees of the agency with respect to the period of
the lapse in regular appropriations; and
(B) payment to contractors of the agency to be used
by the contractors to provide standard employee
compensation to covered contract employees of the
contractor.
(2) Agency requirement.--The head of each agency to whom
amounts are made available under paragraph (1) shall provide
standard employee compensation to covered employees of the
agency--
(A) with respect to the period beginning on October
1, 2025, and ending on the date of enactment of this
Act, as soon as is practicable, but not later than 7
days after the date of enactment of this Act, without
regard to--
(i) scheduled pay dates; or
(ii) whether the covered employee was
subject to furlough during such period; and
(B) with respect to any period of a lapse in
regular appropriations beginning on or after the date
of enactment of this Act, on the regularly scheduled
pay dates of the covered employees.
(c) Termination.--Appropriations and funds made available and
authority granted under subsection (b) shall be available to the head
of an agency until whichever of the following first occurs:
(1) The enactment into law of appropriations for the agency
until the end of the applicable fiscal year (including a
continuing appropriation) that provide amounts for the purposes
for which amounts are made available under subsection (b).
(2) The enactment into law of appropriations for the agency
until the end of the applicable fiscal year (including a
continuing appropriation) without any appropriation for such
purposes.
(d) Limitation to Individuals Affected by a Shutdown.--Amounts
provided under subsection (b) may not be used to provide standard
employee compensation to a covered employee, or to provide payment to a
contractor of the agency to provide standard employee compensation to a
covered contract employee of the contractor, for any portion of a lapse
in regular appropriations for which the covered employee is provided
with standard employee compensation, or contractor is provided payment
to provide standard employee compensation to covered contract employees
of the contractor, respectively, using amounts other than amounts
provided under subsection (b).
(e) Interim Continuing Appropriations.--Appropriations made
available under subsection (b) may not be obligated by the head of an
agency during any period during which continuing appropriations for the
purposes for which amounts are made available under subsection (b) are
in effect for the agency.
(f) Charging to Future Appropriations.--Expenditures made pursuant
to subsection (b) shall be charged to the applicable appropriation,
fund, or authorization whenever an Act in which such applicable
appropriation, fund, or authorization is included is enacted into law.
(g) Limitation on Transfer Authority.--Notwithstanding any other
provision of law (including any appropriation Act), the amounts
provided under subsection (b)--
(1) shall be available solely to provide standard employee
compensation to covered employees and to provide payment to
contractors of the agency to be used by the contractors to
provide standard employee compensation to covered contract
employees of the contractors; and
(2) may not be transferred, reprogrammed, obligated, or
expended for any other purpose.
(h) Terms and Conditions.--
(1) In general.--For fiscal year 2027, and each fiscal year
thereafter, standard employee compensation, and payments to
contractors, provided by an agency using amounts provided under
subsection (b) shall be subject to the requirements,
authorities, conditions, and limitations applicable with
respect to the provision of standard employee compensation, or
payment to contractors, respectively, by the agency under the
Act that provided appropriations for the agency to provide
standard employee compensation, or payment to contractors,
respectively, immediately before the lapse in regular
appropriations.
(2) Fiscal year 2026.--For fiscal year 2026, standard
employee compensation, and payments to contractors, provided by
an agency using amounts provided under subsection (b) shall be
subject to the requirements, authorities, conditions, and
limitations applicable with respect to the provision of
standard employee compensation, or payment to contractors,
respectively, by the agency under the Full-Year Continuing
Appropriations and Extensions Act, 2025 (Public Law 119-4; 139
Stat. 9).
(i) Authorization to Obligate and Expend Funds.--Funds appropriated
by this Act may be obligated and expended notwithstanding section 15 of
the State Department Basic Authorities Act of 1956 (22 U.S.C. 2680) and
section 504(a)(1) of the National Security Act of 1947 (50 U.S.C.
3094(a)(1)).
(j) Rule of Construction.--This section shall be construed to
provide each covered employee with standard employee compensation, and
to authorize payment to any contractor to provide standard employee
compensation to each covered contract employee of the contractor,
without regard to whether the covered employee or covered contract
employee was previously or is subject to furlough for any portion of a
lapse in regular appropriations, for the period of the lapse in regular
appropriations as if the covered employee or covered contract employee
was performing the duties of the covered employee or covered contract
employee during the lapse in regular appropriations.
(k) Agency Activities.--
(1) In general.--Covered employees and covered contract
employees shall perform their typical duties to the maximum
extent practicable during a lapse in regular appropriations.
(2) Other obligations or expenditures.--This section does
not authorize or necessarily imply that an agency or employee
may incur any obligations or expenditures that are not
explicitly authorized by this Act.
(l) Retroactive Effective Date.--This Act shall take effect as if
enacted on September 30, 2025.
Calendar No. 267
119th CONGRESS
1st Session
S. 3168
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To appropriate funds for pay and allowances of Federal employees,
contract employees, and members of the Armed Forces during a lapse in
appropriations, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
November 10, 2025
Read the second time and placed on the calendar
Introduced in Senate
Introduced in the Senate. Read the first time. Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under Read the First Time.
Read the second time. Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 267.
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