Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., said on Wednesday he will donate his Senate pay to Vermont charities while federal employees go without paycheck during the partial shutdown of the federal government.

“If the Trump initiated shutdown is not resolved shortly, hundreds of thousands of federal employees will not receive their paychecks – including more than 1,300 Vermonters. I will do everything I can to end this destructive shutdown as soon as possible. During the time that federal employees do not receive a paycheck, I will be donating my U.S. Senate salary to Vermont charities.”

Federal shutdown

Parts of the federal government have been shutdown since Dec. 22 over a disagreement between congressional Democrats and President Donald Trump on the president's $5.7 billion request to build a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border.

The shutdown affects about 800,000 federal workers who have been sent home or are being asked to work without pay.

On Jan 12, the current shutdown would become the longest in U.S. history, surpassing 21-day shutdown that began in December 1995.

More:Trump storms out of meeting with congressional leaders, threatening to declare emergency at border

Rep. Peter Welch

Sanders joins Rep. Peter Welch, D-Vt., who sent a letter on Jan. 3 asking his pay to be withheld during the shutdown.

The letter, address to Phil Kiko, chief administrative office of the U.S. House of Representatives, reads:

"Dear Mr Kiko.

"Due to the lapse in appropriations for numerous federal department and agencies, hundreds of thousands of federal employees are working without pay or furloughed without pay.

"Please withhold my pay for the duration of the partial government shutdown that began on december 22, 2018."

More:How the partial federal shutdown affects Vermont dairy farmers and Coast Guard employees

Sen. Patrick Leahy

David Carle, spokesman for Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., responded to a question about what the senator plans to do about his pay during the shutdown with the following statement:

"No one’s working and fighting harder to end the Trump shutdown than he is. As vice chair of the Appropriations Committee he and his staff worked through the holidays to try to dissuade the President from this impetuous shutdown. The Senate unanimously passed the appropriations bills to do this in December, then the President changed his mind and refused to sign them. Now the new House passed a six-bill appropriations package to reopen federal agencies, and he continues to lead in pressing Republican leaders in the Senate to do the same. Once the shutdown ends, he believes it must be a high priority, and in fact an obligation, to recompensate the workers who have been caught up in this senseless shutdown."