119th Congress · introduced in the Senate · Oct 28, 2025
Pay the People Act
Official title from Congress.gov
Latest action (Oct 28, 2025): Read twice and referred to the Committee on Appropriations.
View on Congress.govPolicy area: Government Operations and Politics
Congressional Research Service summary, version: Introduced in Senate (Oct 28, 2025)
Pay the People Act
This bill provides appropriations to pay federal employees during a government shutdown due to a lapse in appropriations.
Specifically, the bill provides appropriations for federal agencies to provide standard rates of pay, allowances, pay differentials, benefits, and other payments to agency employees (including contractors and members of the Armed Forces on active duty) during any period in which interim continuing appropriations or full-year appropriations are not in effect for a fiscal year (i.e., a government shutdown).
A federal agency may not use the funds provided by this bill during any period in which continuing appropriations are in effect for the purpose of paying employees of the agency.
The bill must take effect as if it had been enacted on September 30, 2025.
No cosponsors.
Includes amendment, cloture, and procedural votes. Each is labeled with its exact question; only a passage question is a vote to pass the bill.
No recorded roll calls on this bill in coverage.
Read twice and referred to the Committee on Appropriations.
Introduced in Senate
Actions from Congress.gov, newest first.
LD-2 reports whose issue descriptions explicitly cite this bill (bill type and number validated against Congress.gov records). A citation does not establish the client's position or any contact with a member.
Loading lobbying reportsCoverage: reports for 2025 onward, posted Jan 1, 2025 through Oct 23, 2026.
4 citations.
NATIONAL TREASURY EMPLOYEES UNION · lobbying firm or registrant: NATIONAL TREASURY EMPLOYEES UNION
2026 Q3 report (Jul 1, 2026 – Sep 30, 2026) · posted Oct 19, 2026 · issue area: Budget/Appropriations
$310,000
Spent on own lobbying
…ct S. 3001, Shutdown Fairness Act S. 3039, True Shutdown Fairness Act S. 3165, True Shutdown Fairness Act S. 3043, Military and Federal Employee Protection Act S. 3066, Pay the People Act S. 3681, Keep Our Border Agents Paid Act S. 3951, Balanced Budget Responsibility Act of 2026 S. 4012, Fiscal Commission Act S. 4173, Dollar…
Congress inferred from the report year; bill number and the title cited with it match Congress.gov records, and the bill predates the report. The amount is lobbying spending for every issue on this report, not this bill alone, and none of it is paid to any member of Congress. View filing
NATIONAL TREASURY EMPLOYEES UNION · lobbying firm or registrant: NATIONAL TREASURY EMPLOYEES UNION
2026 Q2 report (Apr 1, 2026 – Jun 30, 2026) · posted Jul 20, 2026 · issue area: Budget/Appropriations
$340,000
Spent on own lobbying
…ct S. 3001, Shutdown Fairness Act S. 3039, True Shutdown Fairness Act S. 3165, True Shutdown Fairness Act S. 3043, Military and Federal Employee Protection Act S. 3066, Pay the People Act S. 3681, Keep Our Border Agents Paid Act S. 3951, Balanced Budget Responsibility Act of 2026 S. 4012, Fiscal Commission Act S. 4173, Dollar…
Congress inferred from the report year; bill number and the title cited with it match Congress.gov records, and the bill predates the report. The amount is lobbying spending for every issue on this report, not this bill alone, and none of it is paid to any member of Congress. View filing
NATIONAL TREASURY EMPLOYEES UNION · lobbying firm or registrant: NATIONAL TREASURY EMPLOYEES UNION
2026 Q1 report (Jan 1, 2026 – Mar 31, 2026) · posted Apr 13, 2026 · issue area: Budget/Appropriations
$310,000
Spent on own lobbying
…ct S. 3001, Shutdown Fairness Act S. 3039, True Shutdown Fairness Act S. 3165, True Shutdown Fairness Act S. 3043, Military and Federal Employee Protection Act S. 3066, Pay the People Act S. 3681, Keep Our Border Agents Paid Act S. 3951, Balanced Budget Responsibility Act of 2026 S. 4012, Fiscal Commission Act S. 4173, Dollar…
Congress inferred from the report year; bill number and the title cited with it match Congress.gov records, and the bill predates the report. The amount is lobbying spending for every issue on this report, not this bill alone, and none of it is paid to any member of Congress. View filing
NATIONAL TREASURY EMPLOYEES UNION · lobbying firm or registrant: NATIONAL TREASURY EMPLOYEES UNION
2025 Q4 report (Oct 1, 2025 – Dec 31, 2025) · posted Jan 20, 2026 · issue area: Budget/Appropriations
$350,000
Spent on own lobbying
…S. 2806, Eliminate Shutdowns Act S. 3039, True Shutdown Fairness Act S. 3165, True Shutdown Fairness Act S. 3043, Military and Federal Employee Protection Act S. 3066, Pay the People Act
Congress inferred from the report year; bill number and the title cited with it match Congress.gov records, and the bill predates the report. The amount is lobbying spending for every issue on this report, not this bill alone, and none of it is paid to any member of Congress. View filing