Delaware’s US Rep. wants congressional pay freeze during default

Congressman John Carney (D) has introduced a bill that would keep members of Congress from being paid during a potential default, and that money would not be paid retroactively when the default is resolved.

If the federal government can’t reach a deal on the debt ceiling, tough decisions would have to be made about what bills must be paid, and what could go without.  Carney’s “Stop Pay for Member Act” would make paying members of Congress something that the government could go without doing.  It would place paying Congress at the bottom of a list of about 80 million payments that need to be made with the limited revenue.

“I’ve introduced this legislation to ensure that members of Congress don’t receive any pay during a default — and that we don’t receive that pay retroactively once the crisis is resolved,” Carney said in a written statement.  

Even though his bill is preparing for the worst-case scenario, he’s adamant that a deal must be reached.  “We must not allow a default to occur,” he says. “If we put our partisanship aside, the two parties can find enough common ground to pass a comprehensive debt reduction plan with a debt ceiling increase.”