Shutdown Fairness Act
Latest action · Nov 7, 2025 Upon reconsideration, cloture on the motion to proceed to the measure not invoked in Senate by Yea-Nay Vote. 53 - 43. Record Vote Number: 609.
Progress
Where this bill reached, and when. A stage with no date was not reached; one that failed a vote and later carried shows the date it carried.
- IntroducedOct 15, 2025
- Passed SenateNot reached
- Passed HouseNot reached
- To the PresidentNot reached
- Became lawNot reached
Summary
Shutdown Fairness Act
This bill provides appropriations to pay federal employees who work during a government shutdown.
Specifically, the bill provides appropriations for federal agencies to provide standard rates of pay, allowances, pay differentials, benefits, and other payments to excepted employees for work performed 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). An excepted employee is an employee who is required to work during a government shutdown.
Under current law, excepted employees are not paid until the government shutdown is over. This bill provides appropriations to pay excepted employees during a government shutdown. The bill also specifies that the term excepted employee includes certain contractors who support federal employees during a government shutdown and members of the Armed Forces who are on active duty.
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 excepted employees of the agency.
The bill must take effect as if it had been enacted on September 30, 2025.
Recorded votes 2
Newest first. Open one to see how every member voted.
| Roll call | Question | Result | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Senate 609 | On Cloture on the Motion to Proceed S. 3012 | Cloture on the Motion to Proceed Rejected53–43 | Nov 7, 2025 |
| Senate 585 | On Cloture on the Motion to Proceed S. 3012 | Cloture on the Motion to Proceed Rejected54–45 | Oct 23, 2025 |
Cosponsors 13
Members who signed on, in the order they did. Signatures ran from Oct 15, 2025 to Oct 22, 2025; 7 are original cosponsors, there from the day it was introduced.
| Seat | Cosponsor | Signed on | |
|---|---|---|---|
| R-LA | Bill Cassidy | Original | Oct 15, 2025 |
| R-AK | Dan Sullivan | Original | Oct 15, 2025 |
| R-ID | James E. Risch | Original | Oct 15, 2025 |
| R-ID | Mike Crapo | Original | Oct 15, 2025 |
| R-NC | Ted Budd | Original | Oct 15, 2025 |
| R-IN | Todd Young | Original | Oct 15, 2025 |
| R-AR | Tom Cotton | Original | Oct 15, 2025 |
| R-PA | David McCormick | Oct 20, 2025 | |
| R-WY | John Barrasso | Oct 20, 2025 | |
| R-ND | John Hoeven | Oct 20, 2025 | |
| R-UT | Mike Lee | Oct 20, 2025 | |
| R-FL | Rick Scott | Oct 21, 2025 | |
| R-OK | James Lankford | Oct 22, 2025 |
Actions 10
Everything that happened, newest first.
- Nov 7, 2025Motion to proceed to consideration of the motion to reconsider the vote by which cloture on the motion to proceed to S. 3012 was not invoked (Record Vote No. 585) agreed to in Senate by Voice Vote. (CR S7996)
- Nov 7, 2025Motion by Senator Thune to reconsider the vote by which cloture on the motion to proceed to S. 3012 was not invoked (Record Vote No. 585) agreed to in Senate by Voice Vote. (CR S7996)
- Nov 7, 2025Upon reconsideration, cloture on the motion to proceed to the measure not invoked in Senate by Yea-Nay Vote. 53 - 43. Record Vote Number: 609.
- Oct 23, 2025Cloture motion on the motion to proceed to the measure not invoked in Senate by Yea-Nay Vote. 54 - 45. Record Vote Number: 585. (CR S7720)
- Oct 23, 2025Motion by Senator Thune to reconsider the vote by which cloture on the motion to proceed to S. 3012 was not invoked (Record Vote No. 585) made in Senate.
- Oct 21, 2025Motion to proceed to consideration of measure made in Senate. (CR S7184-7185)
- Oct 21, 2025Cloture motion on the motion to proceed to the measure presented in Senate. (CR S7185)
- Oct 16, 2025Read the second time. Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 191.
- Oct 15, 2025Introduced in Senate
- Oct 15, 2025Introduced in the Senate. Read the first time. Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under Read the First Time.
In the Congressional Record 9
Days the Record’s own index lists this bill, newest first, with the pages and the members it names. Pages starting H are the House, S the Senate, E Extensions of Remarks.
| Where | In the Record | Members | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Senate | Debate and remarks S1905 | John Kennedy R-LA | Apr 22, 2026 |
| Senate | Debate and remarks S8027 | Ron Johnson R-WI | Nov 8, 2025 |
| Senate | Debate and remarks S7977–S7979, S7989–S7996Cloture motions S7996Recorded votes S7996cloture motion on motion to proceed | Bernie Moreno R-OH (cloture motion), Cindy Hyde-Smith R-MS (cloture motion), Cynthia M. Lummis R-WY, Dan Sullivan R-AK, David McCormick R-PA (cloture motion), Gary C. Peters D-MI, Jeff Merkley D-OR, John Thune R-SD (cloture motion), Jon Husted R-OH (cloture motion), Joni Ernst R-IA (cloture motion), Katie Boyd Britt R-AL (cloture motion), Mike Lee R-UT, Mike Rounds R-SD (cloture motion), Pete Ricketts R-NE (cloture motion), Rick Scott R-FL (cloture motion), Roger F. Wicker R-MS (cloture motion), Roger Marshall R-KS (cloture motion), Ron Johnson R-WI (cloture motion), Shelley Moore Capito R-WV (cloture motion), Steve Daines R-MT (cloture motion), Ted Budd R-NC (cloture motion), Ted Cruz R-TX, Tommy Tuberville R-AL (cloture motion) | Nov 7, 2025 |
| Senate | Debate and remarks S7953–S7955 | John Kennedy R-LA, Patty Murray D-WA, Rand Paul R-KY | Nov 6, 2025 |
| Senate | Debate and remarks S7706–S7709, S7711, S7714–S7717, S7719–S7722, S7727, S7728Motions S7720Cloture motions S7720Recorded votes S7720cloture motion on motion to proceed | Bernie Moreno R-OH (cloture motion), Charles E. Schumer D-NY, Chris Van Hollen D-MD, Cindy Hyde-Smith R-MS (cloture motion), David McCormick R-PA (cloture motion), James Lankford R-OK, John Thune R-SD (cloture motion, motion), Jon Husted R-OH (cloture motion), Jon Ossoff D-GA, Joni Ernst R-IA (cloture motion), Katie Boyd Britt R-AL (cloture motion), Mark R. Warner D-VA, Mike Rounds R-SD (cloture motion), Pete Ricketts R-NE (cloture motion), Rick Scott R-FL (cloture motion), Roger F. Wicker R-MS (cloture motion), Roger Marshall R-KS (cloture motion), Ron Johnson R-WI (cloture motion), Shelley Moore Capito R-WV (cloture motion), Steve Daines R-MT (cloture motion), Ted Budd R-NC (cloture motion), Tommy Tuberville R-AL (cloture motion) | Oct 23, 2025 |
Research
What has been written about this bill: committee reports, cost estimates, the sponsor’s authority statement, printed hearings and the Congressional Research Service’s work.
Printed hearings 1
Hearings whose printed record names this bill, newest first: hearings on it, and wider hearings where it came up.
| Number | Hearing | Committee | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| S. Hrg. 119-318 | FLYING ON EMPTY: HOW SHUTDOWNS THREATEN AIR SAFETY, TRAVEL, AND THE ECONOMY85 pages | Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee | Nov 19, 2025 |
CRS reports 1
Congressional Research Service work that CRS links to this bill or the law it became, newest first.
Cite it 1
Products on other subjects that cite it, usually among other measures.
| Product | Title | Kind | Published |
|---|---|---|---|
| R49491 | Federal Government Shutdowns and the Impact on Civil Aviation | Report | Oct 22, 2026 |
Amendments 2
Amendments offered to this bill.
| Amendment | Description | Offered by | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| SA 3932 | No description on file | John Kennedy R-LA | Senate amendment submitted |
| SA 3933 | No description on file | John Kennedy R-LA | Senate amendment submitted |
Related bills 3
Companion bills and other measures the record links to this one.
| Bill | Title | Relationship | Latest action |
|---|---|---|---|
| S 3001 | Shutdown Fairness Act | Related bill | Oct 9, 2025 |
| S 3066 | Pay the People Act | Related bill | Oct 28, 2025 |
| HR 5801 | Shutdown Fairness Act | Identical bill | Oct 21, 2025 |
Titles 2
Every title it has carried, official and short, at each stage.
- Official Title as Introduced
- A bill to appropriate funds for pay and allowances of excepted Federal employees for periods of work performed during a lapse in appropriations, and for other purposes.
- Short Title(s) from PCS (Placed on Senate Calendar) bill text
- Shutdown Fairness Act
Subjects
Assigned by the Library of Congress. Policy area: Government Operations and Politics.
Text 1
Each version as it was printed, newest first.
- Oct 16, 2025Placed on Calendar Senate
Everything here is as published by Congress: the summary is the Congressional Research Service's, the action wording is the clerks', and the subjects are the Library of Congress's. How far it got is read from the actions themselves, taking the most recent one of each kind, so a bill that failed a vote and later passed is shown as having passed. Records come from this bill on Congress.gov and govinfo.gov; cost estimates are the Congressional Budget Office's, and the hearings are the printed hearings GovInfo publishes, which can appear months after the hearing.
