Following the record-breaking shutdown, the House passed a measure yesterday to finance the government until January 30th, and President Trump approved it, ending the federal government's closure that began on October 1st.
TL;DR
- Record-breaking government shutdown ended with a deal to fund the government until January 30th.
- About 800,000 federal employees will receive back pay; SNAP benefits are fully funded until September.
- Flight operations and employment figures will not immediately return to normal due to lingering effects.
- Government data, like October's inflation and jobs figures, may not be released to the public.
Government operations were set to restart following an agreement that emerged after eight Democratic senators diverged from their party, enabling Republicans to approve a spending measure without the enhanced healthcare subsidies that Democrats had sought. The legislation also featured the rehiring of federal employees furloughed during the shutdown and a contentious clause permitting certain Republican senators to pursue legal action concerning inquiries tied to January 6, 2021. Additionally, six Democrats joined Republicans in the House vote.
Some things will quickly resume with the government back up and running:
- About 800,000 federal employees who had been furloughed or working without pay will start receiving a paycheck again and get back pay.
- The spending bill reinstates complete funding for SNAP benefits until September of next year. Recipients of the program, numbering close to 42 million Americans, may see funds arrive within a day, though the exact timing will differ by state.
However, it might take some time before things return to their usual state.
Last week, the FAA initiated cutting flights to alleviate strain on air traffic controllers who were not being paid, leading to travel interruptions that reached their highest point on Sunday, with almost 3,000 flights canceled and 11,000 delayed. Now that the shutdown has ended, the FAA announced that the reductions will stay at 6% for the current week, instead of increasing to the anticipated 10%, and will be discontinued when it is deemed safe.
National Air Traffic Controllers Association President Nick Daniels stated earlier this week that it took more than two months for staffing to recover following the 2019 shutdown's conclusion.
And government data will be weird for a while. Delays are expected, and the White House indicated that October's inflation and jobs figures, which the government hasn't been gathering, might never become public. This would deprive the Fed of essential data when considering a potential interest rate reduction in December.—MM
This report was originally published by Morning Brew.