What Happens If The Government Shuts Down?

The news of a potential government shutdown has dominated the news cycle the last couple of days as Democrat lawmakers are refusing to make a deal with Republicans.

Lawmakers have until midnight on Wednesday to pass a funding extension if not the government will shut down.

What exactly does that mean?

Fox News gave the full explanation and revealed what government services will be unaffected:

The clock is ticking to fund government, and so far, lawmakers do not have a path forward to avert a partial shutdown.

The Senate returned to Washington, D.C., on Monday, and congressional leaders are slated to meet with President Donald Trump to negotiate a deal on funding the government. But the last week has seen both sides point the finger at who would own closing the government.

Lawmakers have until midnight Wednesday to pass a short-term funding extension, or else the government will close. And if it does, it would be the third shutdown under Trump.

A government shutdown happens when Congress can neither pass all 12 appropriations bills needed to fund the government, nor pass a continuing resolution (CR), which typically keeps funding levels static while lawmakers hustle to finish their work on spending bills.

Since 1980, there have been 10 government shutdowns. Only three have happened since the turn of the century.

All shutdowns are different, and the impending shutdown is no exception. However, it could have more devastating effects on the federal workforce than previous shutdowns given the administration’s orders to undertake mass firings.

Programs like Medicare, Social Security and Medicaid will continue, along with the Postal Service, Veterans’ Affairs hospitals and clinics, and Immigration and Border Patrol security activities, among others. Federal employees will likely go without pay, however, and a string of agencies will see their services hampered by furloughs, like the IRS and Small Business Administration. Housing programs may also see a delay in rental assistance and loans.

Typically, shutdowns see thousands of federal workers deemed “nonessential” furloughed, but the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) released a memo last week that directed agencies to “use this opportunity to consider reduction in force (RIF) notices for all employees” in programs that have no other available funding source and that don’t comport with Trump’s priorities if lawmakers couldn’t fund the government.

“RIF notices will be in addition to any furlough notices provided due to the lapse in appropriation,” the memo read, and they will be issued “regardless of whether the employee is excepted or furloughed during the lapse in appropriations.”

Then there is the cost of a shutdown. While the cost of a partial closure this year is unknown, the Congressional Budget Office did an analysis of the cost of the last time the government shuttered in 2019.

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Vice President JD Vance believes a shutdown may be unavoidable.

Watch him explain here:

🚨 BREAKING: After meeting with Schumer and Jeffries, JD Vance says he believes there WILL be a government shutdown, as Democrats demand "free" healthcare for illegals

NO FREE HEALTHCARE FOR ILLEGALS! DO NOT BUDGE, 47!

VANCE: "They're basically saying to the American people,… pic.twitter.com/Bub4yXhzCt

— Nick Sortor (@nicksortor) September 29, 2025

CNBC reported more on the potential shutdown:

A looming federal government shutdown appeared even more likely after top Democrats and Republicans met with President Donald Trump at the White House on Monday.

“I think we’re headed to a shutdown because the Democrats won’t do the right thing,” Vice President JD Vance told reporters after the meeting, which came less than two days before the shutdown will begin in the absence of a funding deal.

The Democratic participants, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, likewise said that the two sides remain far apart.

“We have very large differences,” Schumer said after the meeting. But he added that he believes Trump heard Democrats’ objections “for the first time,” suggesting the face-to-face was at least partially constructive.

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Both sides continued to assert that the other will be to blame if the government shuts down starting Wednesday.