Local groups begin feeling sting of gov’t shutdown
But others finding resources to continue operations
The partial U.S. government shutdown finished out Friday with no end, or paychecks, in sight for an estimated 800,000 federal workers, and agencies that have a presence in the Yuma area are functioning, or not, at various levels.
Military spending was approved by Congress and signed by President Donald Trump before the federal shutdown began Dec. 22, so there’s been minimal impact at Marine Corps Air StationYuma and Yuma Proving Ground, Yuma County’s most prominent federal installations.
Some defense contractors are voicing concerns about the shutdown, but mostly for projects with other agencies that have been curtailed or shut down altogether, including the Department of Homeland Security.
As YPG spokesman Mark Schauer said, “the FY 19 budget for the Department of Defense was passed by Congress and signed by the President some months ago. As such, the current partial shutdown of the government does not directly impact YPG’s operations.”
DHS includes the border wall and enforcement funding, which is at the crux of the debate that forced the shutdown, and tens of thousands of its employees are having to work without pay, as they’re considered to supply “essential” services. Back pay will be owed to them whenever the shutdown ends.
Border Patrol Agent Jose
Garibay of the Public Affairs Office of Yuma Sector Border Patrol said more detailed information is currently unavailable.
“Due to the lapse in federal funding, we will be unable to answer your request at this time,” he said, referring reporters to the Border Patrol’s general public affairs email.
Previous Yuma Sun attempts to obtain additional information have not been successful.
The U.S. Customs and Border Protection website has not been maintained since the shutdown, but border ports of entry such as the two in San Luis, Ariz., are reportedly functioning as usual, and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement investigation and enforcement is also continuing.
The U.S. District Court of Arizona, which operates the John J. Roll United States Courthouse in Yuma, has been able to operate for the last three weeks with funding from user fees and some carried over from the prior fiscal year, said the Phoenix-based district’s clerk of the court, Brian Karth.
That funding will run out on Jan 18. however, and the court will only be able to hear cases involving “the sanctity of human life or the protection of property,” he said.
But Arizona’s federal courts are already seeing a reduced caseload. “You’ll have to ask the Border Patrol and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for their reasons for that,” Karth said.
Federal workers who are not exempt from a shutdown are on furlough, which means they can’t report to work, and likely won’t be compensated for the time lost.
Phones went unanswered at the Yuma offices for many Department of the Interior functions, including Bureau of Land Management and U.S. Fish and Wildlife.
Some wildlife refuges are open for activities that don’t require the presence of a federal worker, according to a notice posted at www.fws.gov.
The Bureau of Reclamation is one major exception within the Interior Department, as its funding was approved by Congress and signed by Trump before the shutdown, as part of the Water and Energy spending bill.
Phones at U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Yuma-area offices were also not picking up, though most voice-mail recordings didn’t indicate whether they were affected by the shutdown.
The Farm Service Agency’s did say, “We look forward to returning your message once funding has been restored.”
Yuma’s agriculture sector is well into its first production season since a multi-state E. coli outbreak that led to five deaths was linked by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Food and Drug Administration to its romaine lettuce.
The CDC was funded prior to the shutdown and is operating normally, on Wednesday announcing the end of another E. coli outbreak, this one tied to romaine grown in central California.
The FDA was not, so it’s had to scale back food safety inspections and audits. It is still responding and investigating active outbreaks, but FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb said this week it’s had to suspend food safety inspections at domestic sites, though imported food is still undergoing inspection.
Gottlieb also said he may call some inspectors back to inspect facilities and foods that are considered “high-risk,” which does include fresh vegetables and fruit and prepared salads.
John Boelts, a Yuma grower and first vice president of the Arizona Farm Bureau, responded to another user’s tweet who considered the U.S. food supply one of the safest in the world, despite FDA cutbacks.
“Agreed. Farmers, invaluable farm workers, Coop. Ext. Researchers, scientists, consultants, laboratory technicians, truck drivers, cooling & processing facility staff & santitation workers provide our amazing & safe food supply. St./Fed. Gov. offer research, reg. & investigations,” Boelts said.
Paula Rivadeneira, a food safety specialist and assistant professor with the University of Arizona Cooperative Extension, said Yuma growers have been very conscientious about food safety long before last year’s outbreak put them under the national microscope.
She has heard from local producers about a slowdown in FDA food safety audits, she said, but little else.
She is anxious, however, to see research funding get back on track, especially given recent discussions with local growers about collaborating with the FDA’s Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition on new E. coli studies.
“There’s been talks about us doing some further research in the area, but the government is shut down. They’re not allowed to work. They’re not allowed to do the things they do day-to-day, so we can’t even chat with them about anything.
“So we’re in a holding pattern, waiting for them to get back to their day-to-day, so we can find out if we will have some financial support to do the research that needs to be done here,” she said.