This is nitpicking but it is not the government who pays, it is the taxpayers and in the end, every citizen. I think the distinction matters in this case.
There was a famous intervention by the previous speaker of the house (Pelosi) saying “we are giving them our money”…
That is why I started by saying “nitpicking” but in the end, it is the State’s money (or the taxpayers’, which is equivalent), not the Government.
The government has no momey, it cannot pay anyone (in a Republic, mind you).