U.S. Government Shutdown

As of Nov 1, 2025, federal funding for SNAP and WIC has lapsed. November benefits are suspended indefinitely because there are no remaining contingency funds. States do not have funds to cover the gap. Please see our resources page for local food banks.

No. Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid are “mandatory spending” programs funded separately from the annual appropriations bills. Checks will still go out and services will continue.

No. Like Social Security, military and federal retirement benefits are mandatory spending and are not subject to the annual appropriations shutdown. Retiree checks will continue to be paid on time.

The IRS is a non-essential agency and is mostly shut down. This means that while the CTC is law, the processing and issuing of payments may be severely delayed.

VA healthcare is considered essential and VA hospitals will remain open. Most other VA benefits, like disability compensation and pensions, were advance-funded and are not affected by the shutdown.

These programs are at high risk. HUD and HHS, which administer these programs, are shut down. While some funds may have been distributed before Oct 1, no new payments or administrative support is available. Contact your local public housing authority for status.

Yes. The shutdown does not pause student loan obligations. If you are a furloughed worker, contact your loan servicer immediately to apply for an economic hardship deferment or forbearance.

The FAFSA website may be online, but the Department of Education is furloughed. This means there is no staff to process applications or answer questions, which will cause major delays for new student aid.

Furloughed (“non-essential”) employees are sent home and not allowed to work. Excepted (“essential”) employees must continue to work without pay (e.g., TSA, Border Patrol). Exempt employees are funded by a source other than annual appropriations (e.g., Post Office, Federal Reserve) and work as normal with pay.

Over 800,000 federal employees are directly impacted. On top of that, millions of federal contractors and private-sector workers whose jobs depend on government services are also losing income.

Yes. Federal law (the Government Employee Fair Treatment Act of 2019) mandates that all furloughed and excepted federal employees receive back pay once the shutdown ends.

No. This is a critical distinction. Federal contractors are not federal employees and are not guaranteed back pay. Their companies’ contracts are suspended (a “stop-work order”), and they are typically not compensated for the lost time.

Yes. Furloughed federal employees are generally eligible for unemployment benefits. “Excepted” employees who are forced to work without pay are also eligible in most states. However, all employees who receive back pay will be required to repay those unemployment benefits.

Furloughed employees can apply for a financial hardship withdrawal from their TSP. TSP loans are also still being processed. The TSP will not default your existing loan if you miss payments, as you will be placed in a non-pay status.

Your Federal Employees Health Benefits (FEHB) coverage continues even if you are not receiving a paycheck. Your share of the premiums will accumulate as a debt, which will then be deducted from your paychecks once you return to work.

Your clearance remains active, but all new investigations and periodic reinvestigations are paused. The danger is that significant financial hardship (like defaulting on a loan or mortgage) *can* be used to question your clearance eligibility in the future. You must contact your lenders immediately.

Contact your mortgage lender, landlord, and auto loan provider immediately. Many banks and credit unions (like Navy Federal and PenFed) are offering furlough relief loans or payment deferrals. Do not wait until you miss a payment.

Yes, but you must still follow your agency’s rules on outside employment and ethics. You cannot work for any entity that has business with your agency or creates a conflict of interest. Check with your agency’s ethics official first.

Yes. The U.S. Postal Service (USPS) is a self-funded independent agency (funded by postage sales) and is not affected by the government shutdown. Mail delivery will continue as normal.

No. The IRS is almost entirely furloughed. While tax payments are still due, the processing of returns and the issuing of refunds are halted until the shutdown ends.

Yes, for the most part. Passport services are funded by application fees, not by Congress, so they remain open. However, a passport office located inside a furloughed federal building will be closed. Check your local office’s status before you go.

Yes. As of November 1, 2025, all National Park Service sites, visitor centers, and restrooms are closed. All Smithsonian museums and the National Zoo are also closed. Some parks with open-air roads may be accessible, but they are unstaffed and unsafe.

All new research grants from agencies like the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and National Science Foundation (NSF) are stopped. Clinical trials may be delayed, and major research projects are paused, except for critical missions (like operating the space station).

Active-duty military personnel are “excepted” and must continue to work. Their pay is funded by the appropriations bill that is in dispute. Their pay is delayed until a funding bill is enacted.

The White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) maintains a public database of all federal agency contingency and shutdown plans. You can find them on the OMB’s website.

Congress could not agree on a funding package. The House passed a GOP-led bill that included spending cuts and border security “policy riders.” The Senate opposed these measures, and no compromise was reached by the Sept. 30 deadline.

Very little. The Constitution gives Congress the “power of the purse.” The President cannot spend money that Congress has not appropriated. The President’s main role is to negotiate with congressional leaders from both parties and to either sign or veto whatever funding bill they pass.

A Continuing Resolution (or CR) is a temporary, short-term funding bill. It “continues” funding at current levels for a brief period (e.g., 30 or 45 days) to give Congress more time to negotiate a full-year budget and avoid a shutdown.

A “policy rider” is a provision added to a “must-pass” bill (like a funding bill) that is on a completely different subject. In this shutdown, Republicans added border security policy changes to the funding bill. Democrats call these “poison pills” because they make the bill impossible for them to support.

A “policy rider” is a provision added to a “must-pass” bill (like a funding bill) that is on a completely different subject. In this shutdown, Republicans added border security policy changes to the funding bill. Democrats call these “poison pills” because they make the bill impossible for them to support.

They argue it cuts too deeply into healthcare, education, and green programs and includes partisan “policy riders” unrelated to essential funding. Read the Democratic position here.

The filibuster is a Senate rule that requires 60 votes (out of 100) to advance most legislation, rather than a simple 51-vote majority. This means that even if one party has a slim majority, they must get support from the other party to pass a funding bill, forcing a compromise.

You can contact your House Representative and your two Senators to share your opinion. Informed, respectful communication with your elected officials is a core part of the democratic process.