U.S. government may shut down early Saturday over DHS funding. What to expect

The U.S. government is on the verge of a partial shutdown starting at 12:01 a.m. ET on Saturday, largely due to the recent killing of a U.S. citizen by federal agents in Minneapolis. It would be different from last year’s closing.

The killing of 37-year-old ICU nurse Alex Pretti sparked fierce opposition from Senate Democrats to the House-passed bill that would provide funding for the Department of Homeland Security and a host of other agencies. The more than $1.2 trillion package was approved by the House of Representatives last week and accounts for the bulk of government spending in the fiscal year ending Sept. 30.

Democratic support will be needed to pass the bill, which needs 60 votes to prevent the filibuster in the Senate, which Republicans control 53-47. Democrats demand removal of the DHS department in exchange for their votes; Republicans have signaled that they will not do this.

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (DY) suggested Tuesday that the Trump administration’s recent retreat from immigration action in Minnesota would not be enough to eliminate the threat of a shutdown and would make a shutdown even more likely.

“The fix must come from Congress; the public cannot trust the administration to do the right thing on its own,” Schumer said on the Senate floor. he said.

“In the meantime, I will vote no on any legislation that funds ICE until it is reined in and overhauled, and Senate Democrats are overwhelmingly united on this issue,” Schumer said. he said. “If [Senate Majority Leader John] “Thune insists on voting on DHS legislation he knows won’t pass, then will guarantee another unnecessary government shutdown this Friday.”

Thune, R.S.D., said on the Senate floor Tuesday that Pretti’s death was a “tragedy” and required a “full and impartial investigation.” He also said talks are ongoing to break the Democratic logjam on the appropriations bill.

“Productive conversations continue, and I urge my Democratic colleagues to continue their engagement and find a way to prevent an unnecessary shutdown,” Thune said.

If the Senate changes the bill in any way, it would have to be reapproved by the House of Representatives, which is on a previously scheduled recess and has not announced plans to return before the deadline.

In addition to DHS, the bill would also provide funding to the departments of Defense, Treasury, State, Health and Human Services, Labor, Housing and Urban Development, Transportation, and Education.

If the bill does not pass by Friday night’s deadline, these institutions will be left without funding and enter a state of closure; This means that “non-essential” employees will be furloughed and “essential” employees will work without pay. Spending the bills President Donald Trump has already signed will keep the rest of the government open.

“Activities necessary to protect life and property continue, but workers in these functions may not be paid for the time they work,” said Caleb Quakenbush, deputy director of economic policy at the Bipartisan Policy Center. “Agencies have a lot of discretion about who is important and at what time.”

Agencies often issue contingency plans before closing. So far, institutions at risk of losing funding have not publicly disclosed their plans.

Certain government functions, such as Social Security payments and Medicare and Medicaid services, generally continue during the shutdown, Quakenbush said. The bill that reopened the government last year also included funding for the Department of Agriculture during the fiscal year; This means the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program will not experience a disruption like last year.

There are still many services that may be disrupted. The weekend will be closed for the first time in the tax season, which starts on Monday.

The Internal Revenue Service is among the agencies that will lose funds during the shutdown. Last year, the institution remained open at some capacity during the shutdown but was forced to cease some operations as the shutdown extended.

IRS said in october Most tax refunds won’t be filed during the final shutdown, he said, except for Forms 1040s, which are “error-free tax returns that are filed electronically, can be automatically processed, and can be direct deposited.”

The IRS’s taxpayer assistance centers were also closed during the latest shutdown.

The Treasury Department did not respond to CNBC’s emails requesting comment on the agency’s contingency plans.

The Ministry of Transport will also be closed, but some important functions will continue to operate. Air traffic controllers will have to work without pay.

The Department of Health and Human Services will also be affected. Some Head Start programs They were forced to close during the last shutdown, leaving families without critical child care.

But DHS will be able to operate largely uninterrupted thanks to funding provided to the agency through the “One Big Good Bill” legislation that Republicans introduced last year. This bill provided approximately $178 billion to DHS, which could be used to maintain immigration operations during the shutdown.

It is unclear whether other affected institutions have identified similar pots of money that could be used to maintain operations. The duration of a potential shutdown will also be critical in assessing how long these emergency funds will last.

“The longer these go on, the more disruption people will experience,” Quakenbush said.

This story is developing. Please check back for updates.