Another government shutdown is fast approaching, but the White House is taking a different, harsher tactic this time.
Traditionally, nonessential federal workers are temporarily furloughed and essential workers stay on the job without pay during a federal shutdown while Congress resolves the funding disputes and then Congress votes to pay them back retroactively. Pressure on lawmakers to come up with a compromise comes from how long government services are turned off before the issue can be resolved.
However, this time the standoff comes under an administration that has been aggressively reducing the federal workforce to eliminate what it called waste and fraud. The White House asked federal agencies in a memo to prepare plans for mass firings instead, saying that federal programs that are not mandated by statute “will bear the brunt of a shutdown.”
The memo from the Office of Management and Budget (OPM) said agencies should “use this opportunity to consider” reductions in the workforce for programs that are discretionary, have another source of funding or that are “not consistent with the President’s priorities.”
How many federal employees are there in Florida?
According to the OPM’s latest data, as of Sept. 2024 there were 95,167 federal employees in all agencies in Florida, about 1 in 20 of all federal employees nationwide.
Of those, 37,468 worked for the Department of Veterans Affairs and 33,163 worked for the Department of Defense or in the Army or Air Force. There are almost two dozen active military bases in Florida.
However, in its first months the Trump administration worked to slash federal jobs and freeze federal funding through the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), which resulted in thousands of firings, layoffs and early resignation acceptances.
Exact numbers are difficult to determine. Many of the people fired were still on provisionary status and some of Trump’s attempts at workforce reduction have been blocked or reversed by lower courts.
But the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration lost more than 880 probationary employees, about 900 NASA employees accepted Trump’s deferred resignation offer, and in March a Veteran Affairs memo announced plans to cut more than 80,000 workers.
Why is a partial shutdown looming?
While House Republicans passed a spending bill on Sept. 19 to extend the current funding until Nov. 21 to give lawmakers some breathing room to approve funding legislation for the full fiscal year, Democrats blocked approval in the Senate where a 60-vote majority is required to overcome a filibuster. Republicans hold a 53-47 majority in the Senate.
Democrats are asking to reverse the upcoming cuts to Medicaid and lapsing Obamacare subsidies that could affect millions of Americans, but Republicans voted down legislation to do that, saying that such a move would add a trillion dollars to spending over the next 10 years. The Democrats’ bill also would have prevented the White House from withholding money appropriated by Congress.
Congressional Democratic leaders Sen. Chuck Schumer of New York and Rep. Hakeem Jeffries of New York tried to meet with President Donald Trump last week but he declined Sept. 23, calling their demands unrealistic.
“This is an attempt at intimidation,” Schumer said in a statement. “Donald Trump has been firing federal workers since Day One ‒ not to govern, but to scare.”
When is the government shutting down?
Funding runs out on Tuesday, Sept. 30, and if a deal is not made and approved, non-essential federal agencies will shut down after midnight, Oct. 1.
How many US government shutdowns have there been?
The federal government has closed down 21 times since 1977, with each shutdown averaging about eight days. The most recent one lasted for 35 days, from December 2018 to January 2019, during Donald Trump‘s first term as president.
Contributing: Bart Jansen, USA TODAY
This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: Government shutdown layoffs could hit Florida hard