H.R. 5891 would require that the salaries of Members of Congress be withheld during a government shutdown (a lapse in appropriations for one or more federal agencies or departments). Under the bill, payroll administrators for the House and the Senate, with assistance from the Department of the Treasury, would continue to process pay but would hold—rather than disburse—compensation accrued during a shutdown. After the shutdown ends, withheld amounts would be released to Members.
Because the legislation would not change the total compensation received by Members, only the timing of payments, CBO estimates that implementing the bill would cost less than $500,000 over the 2026-2031 period for administrative costs. Any related spending would be subject to the availability of appropriated funds.
Member pay is treated in the federal budget as direct spending; thus, delaying their pay during a shutdown would affect direct spending. Because shutdowns do not typically cross fiscal years, CBO considers it unlikely that the direct spending effects would affect net direct spending in any fiscal year.
The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Matthew Pickford. The estimate was reviewed by H. Samuel Papenfuss, Deputy Director of Budget Analysis.
