America is in the midst of a partial government shutdown in the middle of holiday season, because a funding bill hasn’t passed.
What’s the holdup?
President Donald Trump wants Democrats in the Senate to approve his $5.7 billion demand for U.S.-Mexico border wall money. However, Democrats are unwilling to endorse it.
Wondering what happens during a partial shutdown? Here’s what you should know.
What is a partial shutdown?
A government shutdown happens when Congress does not pass funding bills or the president fails to sign them before the previous appropriations run out.
However, the nation currently is headed toward a partial shutdown since Congress has already funded about 75 percent of the federal government through September 2019.
How long would the shutdown last?
If the funding bill doesn’t pass, the shutdown would start Saturday. It would last until both the House and Senate come to an agreement, and the president signs it.
What departments would be impacted?
Nine out of 15 federal departments will close or reduce operations, according to a fact sheet released by the Democratic staff of the Senate Appropriations Committee. Here's a list:
-Department of the Treasury
-Department of Agriculture
-Homeland Security Department
-Department of the Interior
-Department of State
-Department of Housing and Urban Development
-Department of Transportation
-Department of Commerce
-Department of Justice
What happens to federal employees?
More than 420,000 government workers are expected to work without pay if a partial shutdown occurs, according to the fact sheet.
That would include more than 41,000 federal law enforcement and correctional officers, 88 percent of employees at the Department of Homeland Security and thousands of Customs and Border Protection agents and customs officers.
More than 380,000 federal employees would be placed on furlough, or sent home without pay.
That would include the majority of the staff at NASA, the National Park Service and the Department of Housing and Urban Development as well as about 52,000 IRS workers.
