How A Government Shutdown Could Affect You

Once again, the United States is facing a government shutdown deadline. Lawmakers have to pass appropriations bills to fund the government or agree on a short-term stopgap measure that would buy them more time for negotiations. If they fail to do one or the other, the government would shut down — and with it a number of public services.

Even if you're not a government employee, there are a number of ways a government shutdown could affect you, from travel delays to application slowdowns.

What a government shutdown impacts

Tens of thousands of federal employees would be put on furlough until the government reopens.

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A shutdown could cause delays on certain applications, like renewing your passport, and it also means you may find it difficult to reach a federal customer service representative, due to staff reductions.

A shutdown would pause various services and programs, such as Social Security and Medicare benefit verification and card issuance, according to the nonprofit Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget (CRFB). New patients and processing grant applications would also be temporarily halted at the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the CRFB also said.

A government shutdown could also disrupt travel plans as air traffic controllers and TSA officers would need to work without pay. President Biden has said that a shutdown could potentially lead to "significant delays and longer wait times for travelers at airports across the country like there were during previous shutdowns.”

And if you are planning a trip to a national park, you should check before you go. National parks won't necessarily close as a result of a government shutdown, but, during the 2013 shutdown, the National Parks Service director decided to close them and in 2019, there were reportedly some problems due to limited staffing.

What is not affected by a government shutdown

The U.S. Postal Service and other federal activities that are not funded through the annual appropriations process would continue despite a shutdown. This also includes Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid payments, as well as immigration services that are funded by visa fees. 

However, note that in the 1996 and 2013 government shutdowns, staff from the Social Security Administration (SSA) were initially furloughed, and so certain services such as processing requests for new cards were paused, CRFB said.

The Internal Revenue Service (IRS), initially said it would remain open during a shutdown since it has funding under the Inflation Reduction Act to continue operations, but has since said it would partially close, according to a Federal News Network report.

Federal agency contingency plans 

The Office of Management and Budget lists all the federal agencies and their contingency plans for a shutdown, although some have not been updated in several years. According to the OMB's list, agencies that would be affected by a shutdown but may operate with limited staff and services include the Consumer Product Safety Commission, as well as the Departments of Commerce, Education, Health and Human Services, Housing and Urban Development, and Labor.

If you're a federal government employee, you may qualify for the Unemployment Compensation for Federal Employees (UCFE) program, according to the U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM). The UCFE program is administered by state unemployment insurance agencies, acting on behalf of the federal government, OPM said.

Read more on specific agencies and how their shutdown plans could impact you:

• How Medicare Would Be Affected By A Government Shutdown
• A Government Shutdown Impacts Veterans In A Few Ways
• What Would a Government Shutdown Do to the IRS?
• What A Government Shutdown Means For Student Loan Payments
• How Social Security Would Be Affected By A Government Shutdown

Additional assistance

Some companies will offer assistance to anyone who is affected by a shutdown (if it happens). These include the USAA Federal Savings Bank, which is offering eligible members one-time, no-interest loans in the event of a shutdown. 

The loan would be equal to the amount of one net paycheck totaling $500 to $6,000 and must be repaid within three months of funding, said the bank, which serves military members and their families. The bank said it will also offer payment assistance through its other banking products, along with special payment arrangements for its insurance products.

Related Content

• A Government Shutdown Could Disrupt Your Travel Plans — Eventually
• What Does a Government Shutdown Mean for Stocks?
• USAA Members Can Get No-Interest Loans If the Government Shuts Down