What a government shutdown could mean

Congress has until midnight Friday to find a way to fund the government or else federal agencies will shut down, meaning hundreds of thousands of federal employees could be sent home — or left on the job without pay — just before the holidays.

Republicans scrapped a bipartisan plan Wednesday to prevent a shutdown after President-elect Donald Trump and billionaire Elon Musk spoke out against the plan. Trump asked House Speaker Mike Johnson to renegotiate the deal days before the deadline when federal funding runs out.

Here’s what to know about a possible government shutdown, which agencies would be affected and how long it could last:

What does it mean if the government shuts down?

A government shutdown occurs when Congress fails to pass legislation, either temporarily or more permanently, funding the government, and such a measure is not signed by the president.

When would a government shutdown begin?

If Congress does not approve a continuing resolution or a more permanent spending measure by Friday, the federal government will shut down.

When the fiscal year ended on September 30, Congress passed a temporary funding bill to keep the government running.

This measure expires on Friday.

Which government agencies would be affected by a closure?

Each federal agency determines its own plan for how to handle a shutdown, but basically all government operations deemed nonessential cease to occur, and hundreds of thousands of federal employees find their jobs disrupted.

Sometimes workers are furloughed, meaning they keep their jobs but are temporarily not working until the government reopens. Other federal workers could remain on the job but not be paid, in hopes of being fully reimbursed once the government reopens.

The basic rules about who works and who doesn’t date back to the early 1980s and haven’t been significantly changed since. Under an unprecedented memorandum written by David Stockman, then President Ronald Reagan’s budget chief, federal workers are exempt from leave if their employment is related to national security or if they perform essential activities that “protect the life and property.

Essential government agencies like the FBI, Border Patrol and Coast Guard remain open. Transportation Security Administration officers would continue to staff airport checkpoints. The U.S. Postal Service will also not be affected because it is an independent agency.

But national parks and monuments would close, and while troops would remain at their posts, many civilian employees at agencies like the Defense Department would be sent home. Judicial systems would also be affected by the suspension of civil proceedings while criminal proceedings continue.

Automated tax collection would remain on track, but the Internal Revenue Service would stop auditing tax returns.

Will the government shutdown affect Social Security checks?

No. Social Security and Medicare beneficiaries would continue to receive their benefits, which are part of mandatory expenses that are not subject to annual appropriations measures. Doctors and hospitals would also continue to receive their Medicare and Medicaid reimbursements.

But new requests may not be processed. During the government shutdown in 1996, thousands of Medicare applicants were turned away every day.

What is a “CR” or continuing resolution?

When Congress prepares to pass measures to fund the federal government, the term “CR” often comes up. What does that mean?

“CR” stands for “continuing resolution” and is a temporary spending bill that allows the federal government to remain open and operational before Congress and the president approve a more permanent appropriation.

A “clean CR” is essentially a bill that extends existing appropriations, at the same levels as the previous fiscal year.

What is an omnibus bill?

It’s a massive, sweeping measure that lawmakers have generally had little time to digest — or understand — before voting.

There are many spending measures rolled into one, and that’s sometimes what happens if the dozen or so separate funding measures were not passed on time in Congress’s spending process to fund the federal government.

But Republicans opted against an omnibus plan this time, hoping instead to renegotiate all federal spending next year when Trump is in the White House and they control both houses of Congress.

Will a government shutdown happen?

Maybe – and maybe not.

There is often a rush to the Capitol to put together a last-minute funding plan to keep the government open just before a deadline, at least temporarily. But shutdowns have occurred, including six years ago, when Trump demanded funding for a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border. This shutdown was the longest in U.S. history.

Jimmy Carter experienced closure every year during his tenure as president. And there were six shutdowns during Reagan’s tenure in the White House.