Yet another government shutdown is looming.
If that feels like dé·jà vu, that’s because Americans were just in the same predicament in December when federal spending was about to dry up and Congress was dragging its feet on passing legislation for it to continue. In that case, a last-minute bipartisan spending bill averted a shutdown that would have left thousands of federal employees furloughed just days before the winter holidays.
This time around, Republicans appear confident that a proposal to extend current funding through the end of the fiscal year on Sept. 30. is achievable. But nothing is for certain until legislation is officially approved ahead of Friday’s deadline.
Were the government to shut down, a majority of federal workers would be forced to stop working and go without pay. For Americans, that also means services deemed nonessential, like food inspections and some federal health services, would also be paused, according to the nonprofit policy organization Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget (CRFB).
Here’s what to know about what government employees would continue to work during a shutdown, based on prior shutdowns and a plan the White House most recently outlined in 2023.
Federal funding runs dry at the end of the day on Friday, March 14, so a shutdown would be triggered if a new funding bill is not passed by then.
Many federal government agencies and programs that rely on annual funding appropriations would be paused if Congress fails to pass – and President Donald Trump fails to sign – budget legislation.
During a government shutdown, hundreds of thousands of federal workers deemed nonessential would be furloughed until funding is passed, meaning they won’t work and won’t be paid.
Employees whose work is classified as an essential service for critical operations in defense, energy, agriculture and other sectors would continue to work without pay. However, under a 2019 law, all federal workers would be reimbursed for retroactive wages later.
Each federal agency develops its own shutdown plan based previous shutdowns and guidance from the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), according to the CRFB.
When government employees are furloughed, they are temporarily ordered not to work and don’t receive any pay, according to OPM’s Guidance for Shutdown Furloughs.
In the case of a government shutdown, those workers are put on leave because there isn’t money budgeted for their job. The good news is that furloughed employees who are not allowed to work or who do not receive paychecks are still guaranteed back pay due to legislation passed in January 2019.
Agents at the FBI, the Drug Enforcement Administration and other federal law enforcement agencies would remain on the job, as would prison staffers.
Most Border Patrol, immigration enforcement agents and customs agents would continue to work, though local governments will not receive new aid for migrant shelters.
The Secret Service and the Coast Guard would also continue to operate at nearly full-staff.
Any travel plans are unlikely to be disrupted.
Transportation Security Administration agents who operate security at airports, as well as air-traffic control workers would be required to work.
However, in past shutdowns, some airports have struggled with staffers not reporting to work, which forced some operations to be suspended. Additionally, the TSA would not be able to hire new airport security screeners.
Mail carriers deliver post in snow, rain, heat … and government shutdowns.
The U.S. Postal Service would not be affected because it does not depend on Congressional funding.
The 2 million U.S. military personnel would remain on duty. Roughly half of the Pentagon’s 800,000 civilian employees would not be so lucky and would instead be furloughed.
Nuclear security remains an essential function, meaning the Department of Energy’s National Nuclear Security Administration would continue maintaining nuclear weapons.
National parks, monuments and other sites would technically be closed to the public. Visitors may still be able to get in, but rangers would not be around and infrastructure like restrooms, help desks and other facilities would be closed.
In previous shutdowns, some national parks closed entirely, while others remained technically open but without staff to maintain them. Some fell into disarray, with trash piling up and toilets overflowing.
Wildfire fighting efforts would continue.
Essential IRS operations would continue, thanks to funds provided in the Inflation Reduction Act, making about a third of the agency’s nearly 90,000 employees exempt from furlough.
That’s good news for taxpayers, home buyers and other loan seekers. In 2013, a backlog of 1.2 million income and Social Security number verification requests delayed mortgage and other loan approvals, and billions of dollars of tax refunds were also delayed, according to the CRFB.
NASA would continue to track satellites, operate the International Space Station and support astronauts in orbit. But the U.S. space agency would do so with a severely diminished workforce, with the vast majority of its staff targeted for furlough status.
Lawmakers would continue to collect paychecks, even as some of their nonessential staffers would be furloughed.
During past shutdowns, the White House furloughed a significant portion of its staff, according to Reuters. Essential offices, like the National Security Council, will continue operating, while others will be scaled back.
Under the U.S. Constitution, the president would continue to be compensated.
Most federal workers and contractors would be eligible for unemployment.
Those who believe they’re eligible can visit the Department of Unemployment Service’s website to file in the jurisdictions where they work, not where they live.
Contributing: Riley Beggin, USA TODAY; Reuters
Eric Lagatta covers breaking and trending news for USA TODAY. Reach him at elagatta@gannett.com
