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Congress·In Committee·S. 2948

Help FEDS Act

Sen. Alsobrooks Introduces Help FEDS Act to Give Federal Workers Unemployment Pay During Shutdowns

6 months ago·View on Congress.gov·Read full text

The Help FEDS Act is currently in the early stages of the legislative process. It was recently introduced in the Senate and sent to the Committee on Finance for review. There are no upcoming votes scheduled at this time.

Passage Likelihood

30%Unlikely

The bill currently only has support from one party and faces a long process in the Senate Finance Committee. Bills involving federal spending and unemployment changes often face significant debate.

  • ·All Democratic cosponsors
  • ·Requires new federal spending
  • ·Referred to Finance Committee
  • ·Targets specific future budget years

Legislative Progress

Senate
House
President
Law

Key Points

  • This bill would require states to let federal employees who must work during a government shutdown collect unemployment benefits, even though they are technically still employed. These "excepted" workers keep the government running but don't get paid until the shutdown ends.

    From policy text

    “allow for excepted Federal employees to apply for and receive unemployment compensation for any week in which such employee is performing emergency work (as such term is defined by the Office of Personnel Management) during a lapse in appropriations during fiscal year 2026 or 2027”
    View in full text
  • The coverage only applies during shutdowns in fiscal years 2026 and 2027, meaning it is a temporary fix rather than a permanent change to how shutdowns affect workers.

    From policy text

    “during a lapse in appropriations during fiscal year 2026 or 2027”
    View in full text
  • Once the shutdown ends and workers receive their back pay, they must repay the unemployment benefits to the state. If they don't, the state can treat it as an overpayment and use its normal collection methods to get the money back.

    From policy text

    “in the case that an excepted Federal employee receives pay under section 1341(c)(2) of title 31, United States Code, for any period in which such employee received compensation pursuant to subparagraph (A), require such an excepted Federal employee to repay such compensation to the State”
    View in full text
  • The federal government would fully reimburse states for the cost of the benefits plus any extra administrative expenses, so state unemployment funds would not bear the financial burden.
Labor EmploymentEconomy Finance

Impact Analysis

Personal Impact

Scores: 1 = low, 5 = highSentiment: -5 to +5 (net benefit)

State Impacts

Scores: 1 = low, 5 = highSentiment: -5 to +5 (net benefit)

Milestones

2 milestones2 actions
Sep 30, 2025Senate

Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance.

Sent to a congressional committee for expert review. The committee decides whether this bill moves forward.

Sep 30, 2025

Introduced in Senate

The bill was officially filed and given a number. It now enters the legislative queue.

Related Bills

1 bill
H.R. 5572Related bill

Help FEDS Act

Sep 26 — Referred to the House Committee on Ways and Means.

Source Information

Document Type

Congressional Bill

Official Title

Help FEDS Act

Bill NumberS 2948
Congress119th Congress
ChamberSenate
Latest ActionRead twice and referred to the Committee on Finance.
Read Full Bill Text

Sponsor

Cosponsors

(6)
D: 6

Analysis generated by AI. Always verify with official sources.