For the first time in 17 years, the Republican House Majority has shut down the Federal government in a futile attempt to repeal, delay, and defund the Affordable Care Act. This crisis is unnecessary and unwise.  Please know that I will continue to work with my colleagues to find a reasonable solution to this impasse.  As of October 1, 2013, all “non-essential” government services will cease to operate, while “essential” government operations will continue.  Here is what you can expect.

 

These critical government services will continue throughout shutdown:

  • Social Security checks for seniors, people with disabilities and survivors will still go out.
  • Troops will continue to serve and they will continue to be paid.
  • Critical homeland security functions such as border security will continue.
  • The Postal Service will continue to operate.
  • The Federal Aviation Administration will continue to operate the air traffic control system.
  • The implementation of the Affordable Care Act will continue, as it is largely funded through mandatory spending.
  • Veterans Affairs hospitals will remain open.

 

These government services will continue temporarily, depending on the length of the shutdown:

  • Veteran Affairs claims processing and payments in the compensation, pension, education, and vocational rehabilitation programs will continue until available funding is exhausted in late October.
  • Federal assistance to school districts, colleges and universities, and vocational rehabilitation agencies are severely curtailed, but funding that has already been disbursed may be spent.
  • The National Institutes of Health will be reduced to a skeleton staff for caring for existing patients and research animals.
  • Federal courts will continue to operate for approximately 10 business days, then furloughs will be issued for non-essential employees.
  • The US Patent and Trademark office will continue to operate on reserves until the middle of October, but will be shut down when those funds are exhausted.

 

These government services have ceased due to the shutdown:

  • The Small Business Administration has stopped approving applications for small businesses to obtain loans and loan guarantees. In a typical month more than $1 billion in loans is approved.
  • National parks, Smithsonian museums, and other federal lands are closed, negatively impacting the tourism industry across our country.
  • The National Institutes of Health is prohibited from taking new patients, reviewing grant applications and making or renewing research grants.
  • Federal economic reports used by businesses and investors will not be released.
  • Housing loans for low and middle income families will be put on hold until the government reopens.
  • Environmental reviews of planned transportation and energy-related projects are being stopped and/or delayed, keeping companies from working on these projects.
  • The Administration on Children and Families (ACF) is not be able to award new Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) and child care grants, which provide a lifeline to low-income working families. 
  • Veterans Affairs call centers and hotlines have been shut down and the bureau responsible for providing specialized and targeted employment and training services to veterans has ceased to operate.
  • Important government research into life-threatening diseases, environmental protection, and other areas halted.
  • New Social Security applications will likely not be processed.
  • The Internal Revenue Service hotlines and processing of tax returns have been halted.
  • The Food and Drug Administration will be unable to support majority of food safety, nutrition, and cosmetics activities.
  • The Centers for Disease Control is limiting its activities to promote immunization, detect outbreaks of infectious diseases, support state and local health departments, and update disease treatment and prevention recommendations.
  • No additional federal funds will be available to support the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children (WIC)’s clinical services, food benefits and food bank activity will be curtailed with no additional funds available to support storage and distribution grants for emergency food providers.