Brennen Brothers, news editor

Approximately 750,000 employees were put on unpaid leave on Oct. 1 when lawmakers failed to resolve a budget deadlock, causing the federal government to shut down. According to the National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL), funding will only be allotted to what the president deems necessary for “public safety or national security, such as military operations or emergency services.”

Brookings shared that Congress was unable to fund the government before the fiscal year ended on Sept. 30. A resolution was given by the House of Representatives that would give funding to the government up until Nov. 21. It will take 60 votes in the Senate to be approved; however, with Republicans holding 53 seats, Democrats won’t vote to pass the bill unless there is an agreement to extend expiring subsidies for the Affordable Care Act. 

On Oct. 7, President Donald Trump shared there was no guaranteed payback for the federal workers put on unpaid leave, writes AP News. This is reversing his policy that he wrote back in 2019, in which Trump signed into law that federal workers would receive payback.

The shutdown is also impacting the travel economy. In a press release from U.S. Travel, the travel economy has lost one billion dollars in spending. President and CEO of the U.S. Travel Association, Geoff Freeman, said in a press release, “This shutdown is doing real, irreversible damage […] Travelers are facing longer TSA lines and flight delays. Airports are reducing flights and we’ve seen entire control towers go dark. The longer this drags on, the worse the cascade of damage will be—for local communities, for small businesses and for the country. Congress needs to act now and reopen the government.” 

The League of Minnesota Cities shares how the shutdown could impact Minnesota. The Minnesota Department of Human Services will continue to operate, and the federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) will have funds for 30 more days. The Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children (WIC) has a shorter funding period. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) will continue to respond to emergencies. But, with the loss of the Disaster Relief Fund, immediate-needs funding could delay reimbursements to states.
On Oct. 8, for the sixth time, another vote failed to pass the bill in a 54-45 vote, as 60 votes are required for the bill to pass for the temporary funding. House Speaker Mike Johnson told CBS reporters that there will not be a call back of the House to vote on a bill to pay members of the military. He calls for Senate Democrats to support the GOP bill in order to reopen the government. Johnson continues by saying that it is up to the Senate now.