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A4 U.S. NEWS
Tuesday 18 december 2018

AP Explains: What happens in a partial government shutdown

By MATTHEW DALY reimbursements. In fact, vir- about 53,000 TSA workers, collection of hundreds of On the other hand, the
Associated Press tually every essential gov- 54,000 Customs and Bor- thousands of tax returns Washington Monument
WASHINGTON (AP) — As ernment agency, like the der Protection agents and and audits. and many other iconic
President Donald Trump FBI, the Border Patrol and officers and 42,000 Coast WHO WORKS — AND WHO park service attractions
and Congress bicker over would close, as would mu-
Trump's call for $5 billion seums along the National
to build a border wall with Mall. In the past, the vast
Mexico, government agen- majority of national parks
cies are preparing for a were closed to visitors and
partial government shut- campers, but during the
down set to begin at mid- last government shutdown
night Friday. in January the Interior De-
In truth, the government partment tried to make
won't really shut down. parks as accessible as pos-
Many agencies, includ- sible despite bare-bones
ing the Pentagon and the staffing levels. It was not
departments of Veterans clear Monday if that effort
Affairs and Health and Hu- will be repeated.
man Services, are already Interior Secretary Ryan
funded for the year and Zinke, who greeted visitors
will continue to operate as at the World War II Memo-
usual, regardless of wheth- rial and other sites in down-
er Congress and the presi- town Washington during
dent reach agreement this the last shutdown, said Sat-
week. urday he is stepping down
In all, about 75 percent at the end of the year.
of discretionary spend- ___
ing for the budget year The Capitol is seen in Washington, Friday morning, Dec. 14, 2018, after Congress adjourned until FEDERAL WORKERS STILL GET
that began Oct. 1 has al- next week. PAID — EVENTUALLY
ready been approved by Associated Press While they can be kept
lawmakers and signed by on the job, federal work-
Trump. ers can't get paid for days
Still, the dispute could af- the Coast Guard, will re- Guard employees. DOESN'T worked while there is a
fect nine of 15 Cabinet-lev- main open. Transportation As many as 5,000 Forest Ser- The rules for who works and lapse in funding. In the
el departments and dozens Security Administration of- vice firefighters and 3,600 who doesn't date back to past, however, they have
of agencies, including the ficers will continue to man National Weather Service the early 1980s and haven't been repaid retroactively
departments of Homeland airport checkpoints. employees also would con- been significantly modified even if they were ordered
Security, Transportation, But hundreds of thousands tinue working, with the ex- since. The Trump adminis- to stay home.
Interior, Agriculture, State of federal workers will be pectation that they will be tration is relying mostly on Rush hour in downtown
and Justice, as well as na- forced off the job, and paid back in full once the guidance left over from Washington, meanwhile,
tional parks and forests. some services will go dark. government reopens. former President Barack becomes a breeze. Tens of
More than 800,000 federal Even after funding is re- Meanwhile, more than Obama. thousands of federal work-
employees would see their stored, the political reper- 380,000 employees will Under a precedent-setting ers are off the roads.
jobs disrupted, including cussions could be endur- be furloughed — includ- memorandum by Reagan ___
more than half who would ing. ing nearly all of NASA and budget chief David Stock- SHUTDOWNS HAPPEN
be forced to continue According to a report by Housing and Urban De- man, federal workers are Way back in the day, shut-
working without pay. Democrats on the Senate velopment and 41,000 exempted from furloughs downs usually weren't that
The U.S. Postal Service, busy Appropriations Committee, Commerce Department if their jobs are national se- big a deal. They happened
delivering packages for the more than 420,000 federal employees. About 16,000 curity-related or if they per- every year when Jimmy
holiday season, wouldn't employees deemed essen- National Park Service em- form essential activities that Carter was president, aver-
be affected by any gov- tial would continue to work ployees — 80 percent of "protect life and property." aging 11 days each. During
ernment shutdown be- without pay during a partial the agency's workforce — The air traffic control system, Reagan's two terms, there
cause it's an independent shutdown, including about would be furloughed, and food inspection, Medicare, were six shutdowns, typi-
agency. 41,000 law enforcement many parks would close. veterans' health care and cally just one or two days
WORK GOES ON and corrections officers Some parks already are many other essential gov- apiece. Deals got cut. Ev-
Social Security checks will and nearly 150,000 Home- closed for the winter. ernment programs would erybody moved on. The
still go out. Troops will re- land Security employees. Among those set to be fur- run as usual. The Federal government also shut for
main at their posts. Doctors Those working without loughed: 52,000 staffers at Emergency Management a few hours last February
and hospitals will get their pay — three days before the Internal Revenue Ser- Agency could continue to amid a partisan dispute
Medicare and Medicaid Christmas — would include vice, slowing analysis and respond to disasters. over deficit spending.q