Featured October 29, 2025 Reductions in force during the government shutdown Back to Blog The government shutdown is now the longest ever—and the public is paying the price Date November 5, 2025 Authors Partnership for Public Service Tags Congress On Wednesday, Nov. 5, 2025, the United States reached a grim milestone: day 36 of the government shutdown, officially making it the longest shutdown in American history. The previous record of 35 days was set during the 2018-2019 shutdown under the first Trump administration. The human cost of this political standoff grows more devastating with each passing day. Some of the most notable harms of the shutdown include disruptions to access of public services and benefits, threats to public health and safety, and a continued—and worsening—cost to the American economy. Access to public services and benefits disrupted Several different services that support low-income or vulnerable Americans face uncertainty or disruption. The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP, which provides food assistance to 42 million Americans, froze on Nov 1, 2025. A federal court ordered the Agriculture Department to use contingency funds to keep the program running, but it is uncertain when the funds will actually be released, leaving states and localities scrambling to provide aid. Some 140 Head Start programs, which provide early childhood education, health and nutrition services to approximately 65,000 children from low-income families, are also facing funding gaps because of the shutdown, forcing closures as programs scramble to find stopgap funding. Families have been left to find other child care options, disrupting routines, straining resources and possibly risking access to work, school or job training opportunities. Risks to public health The shutdown has created serious disruptions to critical public health monitoring and services. Some Medicare and Medicaid patients are unable to schedule new telehealth appointments due to telehealth waivers that expired when the government shut down, leaving vulnerable populations without access to remote medical care during a critical time. Food safety monitoring has also been compromised. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention suspended analysis of surveillance data for reportable diseases, including foodborne illness, which means authorities may be slower to solve a nationwide outbreak. Perhaps most alarming is the suspension of disease surveillance at the start of respiratory virus season. The CDC has stopped updating key dashboards tracking flu, RSV and COVID-19 activity, with the most recent reports now dated to late September—two weeks before the shutdown began. The pause has hindered state public officials from coordinating responses and preventing widespread outbreaks. Threats to public safety Air travel safety has been directly compromised by the shutdown. For example, Hollywood Burbank Airport’s air traffic control tower was left unstaffed for six hours on the evening of Oct. 8, 2025, causing delays and forcing pilots to communicate among themselves to avoid incidents when taxiing to and from the runway. In addition, the U.S. Forest Service has paused all prescribed burns, which reduce the risk of destructive wildfires. These controlled burns are essential for managing wildfire risk, regenerating soil, mitigating pests and protecting ecosystems—work that relies on a narrow seasonal window and is now being lost, potentially setting the stage for more catastrophic fires in the coming year. Economic damage mounting The economic consequences of the shutdown are staggering. The Congressional Budget Office estimates the crisis will cost the U.S. economy at least $7 billion by the end of 2026, with the number growing to $14 billion if the shutdown lasts until the end of November. In addition, roughly 730,000 federal workers have been furloughed without pay, while an additional 670,000 employees continue to work without receiving a paycheck. The ripple effects extend far beyond federal workers themselves. Private-sector contractors have been idled, local businesses near federal facilities have seen revenue plummet and consumer spending has declined as economic uncertainty spreads. The current shutdown is a harmful byproduct of a dysfunctional and unsustainable approach to funding our government. Congress must act to end the shutdown as soon as possible and work to find a long-term solution to funding that prevents shutdowns from reoccurring. For more information about the ongoing harm caused by the shutdown, visit the Partnership for Public Service’s Federal Harms Tracker.
