Possible shutdown in hands of Congress
Many nonessential federal employees could be furloughed
WASHINGTON – Facing a down-to-the-wire drama, U.S. agencies braced for a possible federal shutdown that would begin at the end of the day Thursday if Congress doesn’t pass a bill to keep the government running.
Hundreds of thousands of nonessential federal employees could be furloughed beginning Friday (forced to take time off without pay) if Congress does not avert a shutdown before funding expires at the end of the fiscal year, which occurs at midnight.
The federal workforce has already been upended for the past 18 months during the coronavirus pandemic, with many government workers, like other Americans, forced to stay home for safety restrictions.
The National Parks Service, which has closed some parks and facilities during past shutdowns, are among the departments reviewing their contingency plans. Jenny Anzelmo-sarles, spokeswoman of the National Parks Service, said Wednesday that “determinations about specific operations and programs have not been made.”
Employees deemed necessary to protect life and property such as air traffic controllers, law enforcement, public health officials and federal firefighters would continue to work if the government shuts down, but they wouldn’t be paid until Congress appropriates funding.
“It would be devastating if there’s a shutdown,” said Max Stier, president and CEO of the Partnership for Public Service, a nonprofit focused on good governance. He pointed to the existing pressures the pandemic placed on workers and said while the federal government would maintain emergency services, “it does that at a real cost” by not paying employees.
“And lots of the government will, in fact, be shut down. It makes what is already incredibly hard even harder. I’ve described this as burning down your house in the middle of a blizzard. And that’s being kind.”
The last government shutdown lasted 35 days and started Dec. 21, 2018, when Donald Trump was president. It followed brief shutdowns in January and February 2018.
White House press secretary Jen Psaki said Wednesday the administration is focused on getting a bill to fund the government passed in Congress to avert a shutdown. But she said the Office of Management and Budget has been working on contingencies. Each federal department and agency submitted plans to OMB on what a shutdown would mean for their workers.
“They are costly, disruptive and damaging,” Psaki said, noting that the Congressional Budget Office found a partial shutdown in 2019 cost the economy $11 billion, or more than $31 million a day.
Psaki cited additional “harmful effects.” More than 6,000 firefighters battling wildfires would not receive a paycheck and about 43% of Health and Human Service employees and 60% of IRS employees would be furloughed. She said Americans seeking to secure an FHA loan could face delays and veterans could face delays securing services.
“Of course, our objective is to ensure we avoid it,” Psaki said.
Congress hasn’t scheduled votes to extend funding the government, but leading lawmakers from both parties said Congress could take action Thursday before the midnight deadline. The countdown to a possible shutdown has collided with Biden’s efforts to pass his economic agenda, with the House set to vote Thursday on a $1 trillion infrastructure bill.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said Wednesday the Senate could work quickly to extend government funding to Dec. 3. After Senate approval, the bill would head to the House for a vote and to President Joe Biden for his signature.
“We can approve this measure quickly and send it to the House so it can reach the president’s desk before funding expires midnight tomorrow,” Schumer said.
The House had approved a combined spending extension and increase in the nation’s ability to borrow. But Senate Republicans blocked that measure Monday, arguing that Democrats should raise the debt limit on their own.
The stand-alone funding bill, which would not touch the debt limit, would operate the government through Dec. 3, to give lawmakers time to approve routine spending measures for the fiscal year beginning Oct. 1. The bill would also provide $28.6 billion for disaster assistance and $6.3 billion for Afghan refugees.
Other recent government shutdowns came during the Barack Obama presidency, when the government ceased operations for 16 days in October 2013. The government also shut down 21 days from December 1995 to January 1996 when Bill Clinton was president.
OMB spokesman Abdullah Hasan said that while the budget office fully expects Congress to “keep our government open, get disaster relief to the Americans who need it, and avoid a catastrophic default,” officials are preparing for a possible funding lapse.
The IRS, would maintain 32,178 workers out of 82,412 total employees to carry out responsibilities required by federal law and other obligations, according to the Treasury Department’s contingency plan. The IRS’S remaining 50,236 workers would be furloughed.
Under OMB guidelines, federal employees must continue working during a shutdown if they meet legal exceptions such as work related to the “safety of human life or the protection of property.” Mandatory spending programs – including social safety net programs like Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid – that don’t require annual authorization also would continue.
“Consistent with longstanding practice across multiple administrations, OMB is preparing for any contingency, and determinations about specific programs are being actively reviewed by agencies,” Hasan said. “More importantly, there is enough time for Congress to prevent a lapse in appropriations, and we are confident they will do so.”
“Consistent with longstanding practice across multiple administrations, (Office of Management and Budget) is preparing for any contingency, and determinations about specific programs are being actively reviewed by agencies. More importantly, there is enough time for Congress to prevent a lapse in appropriations, and we are confident they will do so.” Abdullah Hasan, Office of Management and Budget spokesman