Senator Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) collaborated with the Democratic caucus on Wednesday, adding her name to a letter directed at White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Director Russell Vought. The letter urges that furloughed workers receive backpay due to the ongoing government shutdown.
This correspondence, which includes multiple Democratic signatures alongside Murkowski’s, references the Public Employees Fair Treatment Act of 2019. This law, which was signed by President Trump, was intended to ensure that federal employees would eventually receive their salaries despite government shutdowns.
The letter, also endorsed by Senators Tim Kaine (D-Va.), Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), Angela Alsobrooks (D-Md.), and Mark R. Warner, emphasizes the legal clarity on this matter: “All affected government employees, regardless of exception or furlough status, are entitled to receive back pay after the government shutdown ends,” they state. It also notes that agency guidance from the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) backs this stance.
“OPM’s guidance regarding government shutdowns from September 2025 affirms that furloughed federal employees will receive back pay once the agency reopens,” they added.
However, an OMB memo released earlier this month challenges their position, citing a revised version of the law that suggests furloughed workers only receive back pay subject to the enactment of appropriations legislation concluding the shutdown.
Initially, the Internal Revenue Service had indicated during the shutdown that furloughed employees would still be paid back wages, but this statement was later retracted by the agency.
During a discussion on Wednesday, lawmakers expressed concern that the ambiguity around backpay is causing “unnecessary stress” for the 2.2 million federal workers affected.
“Therefore, we urge you to promptly clarify and update the FAQ document and related materials during the appropriations lapse to ensure that furloughed employees receive their back pay, as stipulated by law,” the letter’s signatories wrote to Vought.
House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-Louisiana) suggested last week that the Trump administration does not have a legal obligation to compensate furloughed workers for days without pay during the shutdown.
“There will certainly be discussions regarding withholding backpay. However, some legal experts believe that it would be inappropriate for the government to follow through with that,” Johnson informed reporters at Parliament House.
Murkowski remarked days later that Vought had made “punitive decisions” affecting federal employees during the shutdown and that these actions jeopardized the agency’s objectives.
She is now advocating for Vought to retract its policy of denying back pay to avert further adverse implications.
Other senators who signed Wednesday’s letter include Democrats like Tammy Baldwin (Wisconsin), Richard Blumenthal (Connecticut), and Cory Booker (New Jersey), among others. This initiative also gained support from Democratic caucus members like Senator Angus King (I-Maine) and Senator Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), along with 132 Democratic House members co-signing the letter.
