Congress is facing a new deadline for a government shutdown.
Without new federal funding legislation, essential services and large numbers of federal workers will be closed or without pay starting midnight Friday. There’s an even bigger deadline coming up in just a week.
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Here’s what you need to know about what Congress is doing (or not doing) to avoid a government shutdown.
The federal government can only spend money appropriated by Congress, or detailed in the Finance Act. When these laws expire, Congress must approve new funding or shut down government agencies. That’s what lawmakers are facing this week. Congress passed a bill to fund parts of the government that expire at 12:01 a.m. Saturday’s.
What parts of the government will be shut down?
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The funding, which expires Saturday, targets several agencies representing about 20 percent of the federal government.
Parts of the Department of Defense, including the Army Corps of Engineers and the Department of the Interior, are also funded by expired funds.
Not all government agencies and departments that are depleted of funding will be affected the same, and most will not shut down completely. Activities deemed essential to public safety, economic stability, and the President’s constitutional authority will continue during the shutdown. Air traffic controllers, for example, will continue to work but will be unpaid, as will FDA food safety inspectors.
According to the Department of Veterans Affairs, contingency plan benefits such as health insurance and pensions for veterans will continue during the government shutdown. Of the agency’s approximately 414,000 employees, 96% will continue to work because their pay is not dependent on annual benefits or because they are exempt from furlough.