Federal shutdown rolls on, with taxpayer services impacted

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The federal government shutdown that began Oct. 1 is on track to become the longest in history, surpassing the 2017-18 partial shutdown of 35 days, at the time of publication.

While some of the painful consequences for the public are beginning to put pressure on lawmakers, neither party appears ready to budge from its position on expiring tax credits for Affordable Care Act (ACA) premiums, contributing to a congressional stalemate.

Last week, a federal judge concurred with an earlier district court decision and indefinitely halted the Trump administration’s mass layoffs of federal employees during the government shutdown. Among the 4,200 employees initially targeted for reductions in force (RIFs) were about 1,400 from the Treasury Department, primarily at the IRS. (See our previous story for more details.)

Before the courts blocked the effort, the administration said it planned to lay off more than 10,000 federal workers during the shutdown. These RIFs come on top of more significant reductions since President Trump took office in January; in August, Office of Personnel Management Director Scott Kupor said about 300,000 federal workers would leave the government by  year-end, through firings and voluntary departures — shutdown layoffs would add to this figure.

Democrats have maintained their insistence that an extension of the current tax credit to subsidize premiums of health insurance bought through Affordable Care Act marketplaces must be attached to a continuing resolution (CR) that would fund the federal government while Congress seeks agreement on Fiscal Year 2026 appropriations. Republicans broadly oppose an extension and say they will negotiate on healthcare costs only once the government reopens. House Republicans passed a CR through Nov. 21 in late September, but the Senate requires 60 votes for the measure and the GOP has won the votes of only three minority legislators in the 53-47 chamber. Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) has brought the CR up for a vote 13 times.

On Oct. 30, the president revived a longtime demand, posting on social media that Republican senators should initiate the “nuclear option” and repeal the filibuster so that the GOP can pass a CR without Democratic votes. The filibuster is the 60-vote threshold for most legislation and a powerful tool for the minority. Since 2013, the Senate has eliminated the filibuster for most executive branch and judicial nominees, including those nominated to the Supreme Court. However, Senate leaders have resisted taking the final step to eliminate the filibuster entirely, arguing that they will benefit from it when they are in the minority at some point in the future. Thune ruled it out again earlier this month, and a spokesman for the majority leader said Oct. 31 that his position has not changed. 

As negative consequences from the shutdown begin to impact a larger segment of the population, both parties have expressed hope that the other side will soften its position:

• On Nov. 1, the federal government stopped paying Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits (previously known as food stamps) to about 42 million people;
• Open enrollment began for ACA health plans, with enrollees seeing higher premiums for 2026. KFF, a health policy research nonprofit, estimates monthly costs will more than double.
• Air traffic control personnel, already short-staffed and required to work without pay, have begun calling in sick in large numbers, leading to significant flight delays and, in some cases, airport ground stops — including a notable one at Reagan National Airport, the preferred airport of senators and representatives flying home from Washington, on Oct. 30, a flyout day for the Senate.

However, while politicians in both parties decry these outcomes, they continue to point to the other side as the one that needs to change its stance.   

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