January 2018 Government shutdown

After a 69 hour January 2018 government shutdown, the government was funded for 3 more weeks. This was the first government shutdown under President Trump and the first since the 2013 government shutdown under President Obama.  While the shutdown lasted 69 hours, due to the timing of the shutdown, it was minimally disruptive.  Most federal employees were only furloughed for one day. The government reopened before Tuesday January 23 2018. The continuing resolution (or CR) which provided the necessary funding, passed on January 22 2018.

January Continuing Resolution

The CR pushed the next government shutdown deadline to February 8, 2018. This two-week extension of funding is the shortest CR so far in President Trump’s tenure, and is the shortest continuing resolution since 2014. In 2014, H.J.Res.106 – Making further continuing appropriations for fiscal year 2014, and for other purposes, made an appropriation was made for only 3 days! 

HJ RES 106 was an appropriation for only 3 days.
The shortest CR in recent memory was only 3 days. Pictured is the text of the bill in its entirety

Partisan politics are particularly toxic during this session of congress.  The primarily issue for this shutdown was related to immigration (DACA). The state of the union speech on January 30th displayed the tensions.

Does the timing of a shutdown matter?

We’ve noted in the past the politically, the timing of a shutdown does matter a lot. No one wants a shutdown over Christmas or other important events.

A shutdown during the next shutdown window, February 8, would be more disruptive for the IRS than the January 2018 government shutdown. The IRS has started to allow individuals to submit their tax returns on January 29, 2018, so a government shutdown in the upcoming weeks could cause many taxpayers some pain.

While not all government employees are furloughed during a government shutdown, only about 50 percent of IRS employees are estimated to continue working through the next government shutdown. With fewer employees and money on the line, people may feel the pains of a February 8 shutdown more than the January one, with slower amendments and the possibility of more issues.

Read more FAQs about government shutdowns here.