Washington ( CNN ) -- In an extended shutdown , most of the federal workforce would go without pay , but the checks will keep coming to the 533 current members of Congress . Who gets paid in a shutdown and who does n't ? `` That is disgraceful in my view , '' said freshman Rep. Tulsi Gabbard , D-Hawaii , told CNN . `` Basically the only people who get paid in a shutdown are members of Congress , and that is irresponsible . '' Gabbard plans to send any pay she receives during a shutdown back to the Treasury . The combat veteran said she was shocked to find out recently that members ' pay is protected . It is -- by the Constitution . Opinion : Taxpayers , you deserve your money back . The 27th Amendment to the Constitution restricts any Congress from changing its own pay . The measure was proposed in the first days of the Republic but was not ratified until 1992 , after a grass-roots movement promoted the idea and the necessary number of state legislatures approved it . While many may have wanted to restrain Congress from increasing its pay , the amendment also blocks Congress from freezing or cutting its compensation . The result ? Congress gets paid no matter what . Gabbard is not the only member surprised . The list : What 's open , what 's closed . `` I do n't even know whether it stops or not , '' Rep. John Fleming , R-Louisiana , said when asked about his pay during a shutdown . When told that the Constitution mandates congressional paychecks stay as-is , Fleming responded that he had n't thought through what he would do yet but would likely donate his pay during a shutdown to charity . `` Obviously we need to share the pain of the American people , '' he concluded . The offices for the top two members of Congress -- House Speaker John Boehner and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid -- would n't respond to specifics about their pay . According to a report by the Lexington Herald-Leader newspaper , Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell , R-Kentucky , plans to donate his salary to charity during the shutdown . Rep. Pete Gallego , D-Texas , told CNN he is urging his fellow members of Congress to donate their pay to charitable causes . `` I do n't think we should get paid until ( the shutdown ) is resolved , '' Rep. Pete DeSantis , R-Fla , told CNN 's Jake Tapper on Tuesday . `` I 've asked the clerk to withhold any pay for me until we get this up and running . I just think that that 's fair for the folks involved who 've been negatively affected by this . '' House Minority Whip Steny Hoyer , D-Maryland , disagreed with DeSantis . `` I think that 's another game ( House Republicans ) want to play , appealing to a demagogic approach to this , '' Hoyer told Tapper on Tuesday . Shutdown 'extremely damaging ' to U.S. intelligence operations . `` Members of Congress ought to be on the job working hard , '' Hoyer added , `` getting this job done to the American people , getting their government opened , getting federal employees back to work and serving the public , serving the growth of our economy , serving our national security ends . '' While members will get paid , they must decide which of their own office staff have to go home . Members of Congress run their own office payroll and will decide who is essential and non essential . But even congressional staff members who work during a shutdown would not get paid until later -- only their bosses will get paid on time . `` My staffers are working with pay . Right now , '' Sen. Tom Coburn , R-Oklahoma , said Tuesday on `` Crossfire . '' `` They 're doing oversight on the federal government . ... They 're continuing to work on the waste . '' Coburn also said he 's keeping his salary earned during the shutdown . `` I 'm going to keep my salary and going to make sure I spend it and tithe it and give to it charities and do the thing that I 've always done . ... I 'm not going to stop working . '' But Democratic Sen. Debbie Stabenow of Michigan , who appeared alongside Coburn on `` Crossfire '' on Tuesday , is taking a different approach . `` Eighty percent of my staff , unfortunately , is on furlough , '' she said , `` I 'm going to be contributing [ my salary ] on a daily basis . For every day we are not seeing an open -- a government that 's open , I 'm contributing . '' Americans hurt as DC 'squabbles like kids ' CNN 's Athena Jones , Tasha Diakides , and Martina Stewart contributed to this report .
NEW : Some in Congress say they 're planning on giving their pay to charity during shutdown . Thousands of federal workers have been furloughed and will lose pay in the shutdown . Members of Congress will still get pay , as mandated by the 27th Amendment . Some people say they will give their pay to the Treasury or to charity .