A High-Stakes Race to Prevent the Government Shutdown
Risk of Government Shutdown if Funding isn't Approved by This Week's Deadline
Lawmakers find themselves in a tight spot, rushing to pass a funding bill to stave off a government shutdown scheduled for this weekend. They've been down this road before, passing a stopgap measure in December to prevent a similar situation, which at the time extended funding until mid-March.
If the government does grind to a halt, it won't be the first time for President Donald Trump, who oversaw the longest government shutdown in four decades during his initial term. He's quick to point the finger at congressional Democrats, claiming that they're the ones responsible for any potential shutdown.
Here's a glimpse into the possible repercussions if Congress fails to approve the funding bill by the looming deadline:
Employees Under Threat and Services on Hold
Since Congress hasn't allocated funds for any federal departments, all would be affected. Each agency has its distinct plans and procedures for handling a shutdown, comprising furlough declarations, employee categorizations, operational wind-down periods, and halted activities. However, the specifics can vary from shutdown to shutdown, and it's uncertain how agencies would navigate through it now, given Trump's previous attempts to downsize the federal government that have left operations and workforces in disarray.
The effects could be seen as swiftly as the shutdown itself. Close to 900,000 workers could find themselves furloughed without pay, while more than 1.4 million essential employees would be required to report to work but would be separated into two groups - approximately 250,000 of them would work without being compensated since their salaries are funded through alternative means, according to Rachel Snyderman, managing director of economic policy at the Bipartisan Policy Center. (It's important to note that these estimates exclude the layoffs and departures experienced in the initial weeks of Trump's administration.)
Previous shutdowns have resulted in park and museum closures, paused food inspections, aborted immigration hearings, and delayed federal lending to homebuyers and small businesses, among other implications. Air traffic controllers must continue working, but they were plagued by high sick-call rates during the most recent shutdown, leading to chaos at airports.
Certain essential functions will continue even if agencies cease operation. For instance, Social Security recipients will receive their monthly payments, and Medicare and Medicaid benefits will persist. The majority of the nearly 100,000 workers at the Internal Revenue Service will stay on the job during a shutdown due to the ongoing tax filing season, according to the agency's contingency plan. The agency's operations will continue using funds from the 2022 Inflation Reduction Act.
The Social Security Administration has previously outlined a contingency plan showing that only 8,100 of its 59,000 employees at the time would be furloughed if the government shut down. The plan noted that people would still be able to apply for benefits, request appeals, change their addresses, and perform other services, but they would be unable to correct their earnings records or obtain replacement Medicare cards. Other agencies contacted by CNN declined to comment or provide details on their shutdown plans.
Government agencies have faced multiple shutdown threats throughout the past fiscal year due to Congress's repeated hesitation to approve a full-year funding plan. They only managed to pass one such plan in March 2024.
Trump's Long-Lived Shutdown
During Trump's first term, an impasse lasting 35 days led to the shutdown of part of the government just before Christmas in 2018. It came to an end in late January 2019, when Trump agreed to a temporary funding measure that did not incorporate the billions of dollars he had demanded for a border wall.
However, the shutdown wrought havoc on numerous Americans and federal employees, resulting in travel disruptions, derailed immigration hearings, and difficulties for families trying to secure student loans.
CNN's Betsy Klein, Donald Judd, and Samantha Waldenberg contributed to this report.
- In light of the impending government shutdown, lawmakers are engaging in a bipartisan effort to pass a funding bill, with Joe Biden's administration urging Congress to prevent another shutdown reminiscent of the 35-day impasse during Trump's initial term.
- The 2024 filing of a full-year funding plan by Congress marked a significant milestone, halting the threat of multiple government shutdowns that had plagued agencies throughout the past fiscal year.
- According to the contingency plans of government agencies, essential services such as Social Security and Medicare benefits, as well as the operations of the Internal Revenue Service during the ongoing tax filing season, will continue during a government shutdown, but various other services like park and museum closures, paused food inspections, and delayed federal lending to homebuyers and small businesses may be affected.
