Photo by Brian Ferry U.S. Rep. Glenn “GT” Thompson, left, represents 14 counties that are heavily Republican in Pennsylvania.

Rep. Glenn “GT” Thompson announced that he will not accept his salary for the duration of a pending federal government shutdown, which would occur at 12:01 a.m. Sunday.

In a letter to the Chief Administrative Officer of the U.S. House of Representatives, Rep. Thompson formally requested his pay be withheld during a lapse of appropriations. Upon sending the letter, Thompson shared additional thoughts on the matter:

“Federal employees, contractors, and congressional staff don’t receive pay during a shutdown and Members of Congress should be no different,” Thompson said. “A shutdown is a failure of Congress to fund the government and fulfill one of its most basic functions, as outlined in Article One of the Constitution. If a legislative impasse causes the more than 5,400 federal employees in Pennsylvania’s 15th Congressional District to go without pay, through no fault of their own, Members of Congress should be subject to the same set of rules.”