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Government Services FAQs in the Event of a Government Shutdown

Government shutdowns are disruptive and distracting, impacting many vital services and making

it difficult for agencies to deliver for the American people at the same pace. They are also painful

for the more than 1.5 million Federal civilian employees – about 25 percent of whom are

veterans – and the over 2 million military service members, who would be forced to go without

their employees whose salaries have lapsed as either "excepted" or "not excepted." The

employees classified as "excepted" would work without pay during the shutdown. The

employees classified as "not excepted" would be put on unpaid furlough. Due to the

Government Employee Fair Treatment Act of 2019, all Federal employees would be

retroactively paid for the duration of the shutdown upon its conclusion.

When would Federal employees miss their first paycheck?

• Federal civilian paychecks for the September 10-23 biweekly pay period would not be

delayed. Paycheck dates for that period would vary from September 29-October 5.

• Depending on the length of the shutdown, Federal civilian paychecks for the September

• All active-duty and Guard and Reservists on active-duty orders, including the U.S. Coast

Guard, are excepted and therefore would be required to work, however, like the majority

of Federal employees, they would not be paid until after the shutdown is over. All on-

base non-acute health care would cease, but off-base care provided through Tricare

would not be affected. On-base child care would be open on a case-by-case basis. Federal

law enforcement would continue operations, but some law enforcement personnel would

not be paid until the shutdown is over.

Would my mail still arrive? What happens to the U.S. Postal Service?

• The U.S. Postal Service has permanent authority to fund its operations from revenues,

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Would commercial air travel be affected?

• Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) air traffic controllers, Transportation Security

Agency security personnel, and Customs and Border Protection Officers would remain on

the job during a shutdown, although they would not be paid until after the shutdown

concludes.

This could lead to significant delays and longer wait times for travelers at airports across

the country, like there were during previous shutdowns.

Would a shutdown impact passport renewals or applications?

• The Department of State’s passport operations would continue to operate during a

including routine and emergency American citizen services. These operations are

supported by balances of fees charged and retained by the Department of State that are

unaffected by a lapse in appropriations.

Would Americans continue to receive Social Security benefits?

• Social Security beneficiaries would continue receiving their Social Security, Social

Security Disability Insurance, and SSI payments. The Social Security Administration

(SSA) would continue providing limited services such as issuing Social Security cards

and holding appointments for benefit applications.

• However, the public may experience increased wait times due to a high volume of

would be able to continue to see their doctor and pick up their prescriptions as normal,

with no interruption or delay.

How would a shutdown affect Americans who participate in the WIC program?

• A shutdown risks loss of access to WIC nutrition assistance for the nearly 7 million

pregnant and postpartum women, infants, and children who rely on the program. USDA

Food and Nutrition Service does not have sufficient funding to support normal WIC

operations beyond a few days into a shutdown.

• Some states may have carryover funds or can use their own state funds to continue

program operations for different amounts of time.

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How would a shutdown affect Federal Student Aid?

• We anticipate that key activities, including loan servicing, would continue for a couple of

weeks if shutdown happens on October 1. However, a prolonged shutdown could lead to

disruption.

How would a shutdown impact student loan repayment?

• If a shutdown occurs on October 1, we anticipate that key activities, including loan

servicing, would continue for a couple of weeks. However, a prolonged shutdown could

substantially disrupt the return to repayment effort and long-term servicing support for

borrowers.

• The Department of Education would do the best it can with the resources available and

within the bounds of the law to support borrowers as they return to repayment. 

Would a shutdown impact veterans’ access to benefits?

• During a government shutdown, all VA medical facilities and clinics would remain fully

What would happen if a natural disaster occurs during the shutdown? How would the

shutdown affect FEMA’s natural disaster recovery efforts?

• FEMA staff would respond to emergencies and provide critical life and safety disaster

assistance, but long-term projects will continue to be delayed due to a lack of funding in

the Disaster Relief Fund.

• FEMA implemented Immediate Needs Funding (INF) guidance on August 29 to

prioritize available funding to ongoing disaster operations and preserve funding for initial

response and recovery activities for any new incident. INF would continue until the DRF

is sufficiently replenished.

firesheds.

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Would the Small Business Administration (SBA) continue to process small business loan

requests in the event of a shutdown?

• Under a shutdown, SBA is unable to approve new small business loans (7a and 504,

Microloans) or process applications for most government contracting programs (8a,

Women-Owned Small Businesses, Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Businesses).

• A shutdown would disrupt or suspend SBA’s management, oversight, and collaboration,

nationwide, with entrepreneurial development and technical assistance providers like

• SBA’s Disaster Loan Program would continue regular operations

shutdown.

• Additionally, Farm Bill programs, such as the Noninsured Crop Disaster Assistance

Program, Livestock Indemnity Program, Livestock Forage Disaster Program, and the

Tree Assistance Program would not be available to farmers and ranchers.

What would be the impact on Federal housing loans?

• The Departments of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), Veterans Affairs (VA) and

Agriculture (USDA) would all see varied impacts:

o HUD Federal Housing Administration (FHA) would continue to insure most

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What would be the impact on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)?

• CDC's immediate response to urgent disease outbreaks and critical investigation needs

would continue, though CDC would have a reduced response capacity and would be

unable to fully interface with their public health partners at the State and local levels and

support grantee work.

• Under a shutdown, CDC’s Bridge Access Program would continue to provide no-cost

COVID-19 vaccines to adults without health insurance and adults whose insurance does

not cover all COVID-19 vaccine costs.

• CDC would maintain laboratory functions, operate the agency’s 24/7 emergency

Would the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington D.C. stay

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Would the Smithsonian Institution and National Gallery of Art in Washington D.C. stay

open?

• We are anticipating these museums would have enough leftover funding to remain open

for a few days or up to a couple of weeks, after which the museums would close to the

public.