When Congress fails to pass a full-year spending bill and the government shuts down, federal employees are furloughed and services are interrupted. Unless local leaders can step in with supplemental funding, cities bear the brunt of a shutdown—and so do their residents through decreased consumer spending and missed bill payments. And a longer shutdown undermines the United States’ global reputation, as adversaries see a dysfunctional and divided country that isn’t reliable or stable.
During a government shutdown, most federal departments and agencies close, with the exception of those considered “essential”—including border protection, in-hospital medical care, air traffic control, law enforcement and power grid maintenance. Each agency develops a shutdown plan, based on guidance issued in previous shutdowns and a decades-old Department of Justice legal opinion that obligations necessary to “safety of human life and protection of property” can continue during a funding gap. Mandatory spending (like Social Security and Medicare) and interest payments on the national debt are also unaffected, as are programs that are funded through permanent user fees, like visa fees, and those with multiyear or advance appropriations.
Local leaders should prepare for the impact of a shutdown by working with their congressional delegation to ensure that those considered essential in their communities, such as air traffic controllers and FBI agents, are kept on the job. They should also develop plans to support federal contractors and employees living paycheck-to-paycheck who may lose income during a shutdown, including exploring options for loans or assistance.