Is the U.S. Government Shut Down?

What's happening now (2025 shutdown)

On October 1, 2025 at 12:01 a.m. EDT, government funding lapsed because Congress failed to pass the necessary appropriations or a "continuing resolution" to keep federal operations funded.

• •Congress is deadlocked over budget priorities — major points of contention include health care (in particular, subsidies under the Affordable Care Act), Medicaid cuts, and overall spending levels.
• •Because no law is in place authorizing expenditures for certain agencies, non-essential operations must be suspended and many federal employees are either furloughed (sent home) or required to continue working without pay until funding is restored.
• •In this shutdown, there's also talk of more extreme steps, like mass firings or permanent reductions in force, which some in the government have prepared plans for.

Why shutdowns happen (the structural cause)

• •Every fiscal year, Congress needs to pass appropriations bills (or a stopgap "continuing resolution") to authorize government spending for agencies and programs.
• •If those bills don't pass before the previous funding expires (usually September 30), there's a funding lapse — meaning no legal authority to spend on many operations.
• •Under the Antideficiency Act, government agencies are prohibited from incurring obligations (i.e. spending money) without an appropriation. That law forces the government to shut down non-essential functions during a funding gap.
• •Politically, shutdowns usually emerge when parties (or branches of government) clash over budget priorities — what gets cut, what gets expanded, how much to spend, etc. These fights often include policy demands tied to funding (so it isn't just dollars, it's also politics).