Carolyn Nsimpasi

Associate Editor

Loyola University Chicago School of Law, JD 2026

On October 1, 2025, 255 days into Donald Trump’s second presidency, the federal government entered a shutdown at midnight. This shutdown was due to congressional failure to pass legislation for the 2026 fiscal year. Almost immediately thereafter, a massive shockwave of ripple effects occurred. Several agencies and personnel have been, and will be, severely impacted for as long as the shutdown stands.

The detrimental effects of the government shutdown

A vast majority of federal workers will not be paid during the shutdown. In fact, employees who are considered essential must still report to work but will not be compensated for their time until the government reopens. For instance, although air traffic control services will continue to operate, allowing people to continue their personal and business travels, more than 13,000 air traffic controllers will have to continue to work without pay. Unfortunately, it only gets worse. During shutdowns, critical safety support staff are furloughed, and support programs are suspended, which impairs the ability of air traffic controllers and other aviation safety professionals to operate at peak performance. For example, due to shortage of air traffic controllers at Hollywood Burbank Airport, the control tower was shut down for nearly six hours on October 6, 2025, forcing pilots to coordinate their movements among themselves. As such, although people will still have a means to travel, it is not nearly as safe nor as reliable as confirmed by the National Air Traffic Controllers Association.

Moreover, the Department of Health and Human Services stated in its contingency plan that it expects more than 32,000 of its nearly 80,000 workers to be furloughed during the shutdown. That means 40% of its workforce’s economic livelihood will be flipped upside down. In addition, the Food and Drug Administration cautioned that it will lose its capacity to oversee the use of new ingredients in animal feed, thereby compromising its ability to guarantee the safety of meat, milk, and eggs for consumers. As such, not only are people going to be financially impacted, but their health will be too, leading to further burdens on both households and healthcare infrastructure. Social Security benefits will continue during the government shutdown, as they are legally mandatory. However, a furloughed workforce at the Social Security Administration could delay the processing of new applications. For many seniors and individuals with disabilities, even minor delays in processing benefits can create significant stress and hardship such as the inability to cover essential expenses like rent, utilities, or groceries. A prolonged shutdown could worsen these impacts, especially for those who rely on timely support.

Despite these harmful consequences, members of Congress will not only remain employed but continue to receive pay during the shutdown because their pay is constitutionally protected. There is deep irony in the fact that the people charged with representing the public interest are the only ones guaranteed financial stability when the government ceases to function. Even worse, while everyday citizens continue to live under a cloud of uncertainty, the U.S. government is working to fund other countries instead of its own. It is striking that the most powerful and wealthy individuals in the country will be largely unaffected by a shutdown they created.

The government shutdown represents not just a legislative failure but also a profound breakdown in political responsibility. At its core, a shutdown is the product of elected officials refusing to fulfill one of their most basic duties: funding the government to ensure its continuity. This kind of stalemate punishes the American people far more than it does those in power. Federal workers become collateral damage, essential services are undermined, and public confidence in democratic institutions deteriorates. Meanwhile, members of Congress and other high-ranking officials continue to draw their salaries, constitutionally protected, while millions face financial insecurity, delayed services, and heightened risk. A shutdown isn’t just an inconvenience; it’s a self-inflicted crisis born from political dysfunction, and it underscores the urgent need for greater accountability and reform in how the federal government operates. There needs to be oversight or legislative reform that would allow for federal workers to still get paid during shutdown and prevent the government from spending money while its constituents suffer at the hands of their failures.