Help FEDS Act
This bill, the Help Federal Employees During Shutdowns Act (Help FEDS Act), would change how unemployment benefits are provided to federal employees during a government shutdown. It would require states to allow and pay unemployment compensation to “excepted” federal employees who are performing emergency work during a lapse in funding in fiscal years 2026 and 2027. The federal government would reimburse states for 100% of the unemployment benefits paid plus related administrative costs, with funding drawn from the Unemployment Trust Fund. The bill also sets rules to prevent double payments: if an excepted employee receives pay under the usual funding rules for the same period, they must repay that amount to the state, and the state can treat any unpaid portion as an overpayment and recover it. Repayments would go back into the state's unemployment fund. In short, the bill would federally fund and mandate unemployment support for certain federal workers who continue to work (but aren’t paid during a shutdown) and would require repayment if other pay flows occur during the same periods.
Key Points
- 1States must allow excepted federal employees to apply for and receive unemployment benefits for weeks in which they are performing emergency work during a lapse in appropriations, limited to FY 2026 and FY 2027.
- 2If an excepted employee receives pay under 31 U.S.C. 1341(c)(2) for any period when they are also receiving unemployment, they must repay that compensation to the state.
- 3Any unreturned amount is treated as an overpayment, recoverable like other unemployment overpayments, with repayments deposited into the state unemployment fund.
- 4The federal government (through the Treasury) must pay states 100% of the unemployment benefits provided under this act, plus any additional administrative expenses, funded from the Unemployment Trust Fund.
- 5An “excepted Federal employee” is defined as someone who is (a) an excepted employee under 31 U.S.C. 1341(c)(1) and (b) not being paid due to the lapse in appropriations.