Democratic Rep. John Delaney of Maryland will donate any congressional pay he receives during the government shutdown to a local charity.
Delaney, who represents the 6th Congressional District which covers western Maryland, released a statement on Saturday saying he doesn’t believe it is right that he receives pay while others will go without while the government is closed.
“I don’t think it’s right for me to get paid during a government shutdown while my constituents are being furloughed and important and necessary services are being limited or halted all together,” Delaney said in a statement. “It’s time to be responsible and come together on a bipartisan deal to fund the government.”
The congressman will be donating his pay to the Mercy Health Clinic in Gaithersburg, Maryland, a nonprofit community health clinic that serves uninsured low-income residents, his spokesman, Will McDonald, said. During the government shutdown of 2013, Delaney donated his salary to the same organization.
Delaney is the first Democrat to announce his candidacy for the 2020 presidential race. He has been traveling to early primary states including Iowa and New Hampshire in recent months to gain name recognition and promote his platform.
Delaney makes the base salary for members of Congress, which is $174,000 a year. However, he is the fourth richest member of Congress, according to the Center for Responsive Politics. His net worth at the end of 2015 was reported to be $232,816,089.
