Most NC lawmakers to return salaries if government shuts down

RALEIGH, N.C. — Some North Carolina lawmakers in Washington, D.C., say they will return their salaries if Congress does not reach a budget agreement leading to a federal government shutdown.

Democrat Sen. Kay Hagan said she would donate any pay she received during a shutdown to veterans' charity in North Carolina.Hagan co-sponsored a bill that would suspend Congressional paychecks in the event of a government shutdown. The bill passed the Senate but has not been voted on in the House.Republican Rep. Renee Ellmers supported a House bill saying that soldiers would continue to get paid during a shutdown. The measure was part of a GOP-sponsored one-week budget extension that the Senate is unlikely to vote on and Obama has threatened to veto.Ellmers said she would vote for Hagan's bill cutting Congressional paychecks if it came up for a vote in the House.Democratic Rep. Brad Miller said he will continue to accept his pay because he has a constitutional duty to continue serving.Republican Rep. Walter Jones said pay and other issues should be decided only if an agreement can't be reached.WRAL News has not received responses from Democratic Reps.G.K. Butterfield and Mike McIntyre.House Republicans advanced legislation Thursday to avoid a government shutdown for one more week, cut spending and fully fund the Pentagon, but the White House labeled the measure a distraction and said President Barack Obama would veto it.A partial government shutdown will begin Friday at midnight if a deal is not made.