Presidential administration: Donald Trump
According to Wikipedia, the December 2018-January 2019 shutdown, which was the longest in U.S history to this point, resulted from a disagreement between President Donald Trump and Democrats over the funding for Trump’s proposed Mexico-U.S border wall. Trump demanded an appropriation bill including $5.7 billion for the wall, which Democrats opposed, proposing instead funding for enhancement of existing border security measures. The shutdown began on December 22, 2018, when Democrats rejected a continuing resolution (CR) that included border wall funding. Despite the support from some Republicans, key Democratic leaders remained staunch in opposition, leading to a stalemate on border security funding. The deadlock finally broke on January 25, 2019, with the approval of a plan to reopen the government for three weeks to facilitate negotiation on an agreeable appropriation bill.
Start date: December 21, 2018
End date: January 25, 2019
Impact:
- 380,000 federal workers furloughed (Wikipedia)
- 420,000 workers required to work without any known payment dates (Wikipedia)
- Reductions to Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) payments (Wikipedia)
- $140 billion in Internal Revenue Service (IRS) tax refunds were delayed (Wikipedia)
- About $5 billion in lost revenues (Wikipedia)
Related Resources:
- Federal Budget: Selected Agencies and Programs Used Strategies to Manage Constraints of Continuing Resolutions, Report to Congressional Requestors
- Issues Raised by a Federal Government Shutdown: Grants to State and Local Governments and the Covid-19 Pandemic [Updated September 29, 2021]
- Shutdown Letdown: How the Longest Shutdown in U.S. History Did Lasting Damage to Our Government and the People It Serves
- Impact of the Trump Shutdown
HSDL Featured Topics: Federal Workforce Challenges | Debt Limit
HSDL Search Results: Government Shutdown | Government Shutdown Agency Contingency Plans