# American federal government shutdown: Will you notice? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [April 7, 2011, 8:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-federal-government-shutdown-will-you-notice/577580 "2011-04-07T20:42:46Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Sateryn76](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a88e4f/32.png) [@Sateryn76](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sateryn76)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2011, 2:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-federal-government-shutdown-will-you-notice/577580/41 "2011-04-08T14:29:21Z")
Nope. The Federal court I work with as part of my job just notified us that they have 2 weeks worth of money to continue operating. If it’s longer than that, then I will be, but still only a little bit. Although, I should be starting with a real estate company in two weeks, and I’m wondering what effect the FHA loan situation will do to the pending sales. ---
**Author:** ![Caffeine.addict](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f475e1/32.png) [@Caffeine.addict](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Caffeine.addict)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2011, 2:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-federal-government-shutdown-will-you-notice/577580/42 "2011-04-08T14:30:33Z")
> [@DCnDC](#): > > Mmm that may not be the most foolproof plan ever. Cops can still write parking tickets, and the towing companies they employ charge you, not the gov’t. I know. To me it means that I can camp out on a 2 hour space\* and parking enforcement won’t be there to ticket. Do the police ever actually enforce traffic laws in DC? I’ve never seen it happen, nor do I know anyone who has. - It’s kind of moot for me. I have parking for my car at home, and I never actually park anywhere in DC for longer than the period anyway. ---
**Author:** ![blondebear](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blondebear/32/1022_2.png) [@blondebear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/blondebear)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2011, 2:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-federal-government-shutdown-will-you-notice/577580/43 "2011-04-08T14:32:48Z")
I was planning on going to Joshua Tree NP next week, so I had to make alternate plans. ---
**Author:** ![DCnDC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dcndc/32/2842_2.png) [@DCnDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DCnDC)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2011, 2:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-federal-government-shutdown-will-you-notice/577580/44 "2011-04-08T14:37:12Z")
> [@Caffeine.addict](#): > > I know. To me it means that I can camp out on a 2 hour space\* and parking enforcement won’t be there to ticket. Do the police ever actually enforce traffic laws in DC? I’ve never seen it happen, nor do I know anyone who has. Fair enough. 😉 I see traffic stops pretty often; no less than anywhere else, but I used to essentially drive around the city for a living (not a cab driver) so I probably saw more of it than most. Cops enforcing parking laws is significantly rarer, but it happens, especially during rush hour, when it’s basically illegal to park anywhere. ---
**Author:** ![julius](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ecd19e/32.png) [@julius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/julius)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2011, 2:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-federal-government-shutdown-will-you-notice/577580/45 "2011-04-08T14:38:05Z")
Yes, there will be too many people riding around doing what I do; chilling! ---
**Author:** ![Edward\_The\_Head](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ce73a5/32.png) [@Edward\_The\_Head](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Edward_The_Head)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2011, 2:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-federal-government-shutdown-will-you-notice/577580/46 "2011-04-08T14:43:33Z")
> [@blondebear](#): > > I was planning on going to Joshua Tree NP next week, so I had to make alternate plans. Except that Joshua Tree maybe ‘closed’ in the sense that the visitor center and shops will not be open, but the roads should be. When I was there they didn’t have gates and such and people do go in at night. You might actually get lucky. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2011, 2:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-federal-government-shutdown-will-you-notice/577580/47 "2011-04-08T14:48:04Z")
I didn’t think I would notice, but it just occurred to me that IRS refund issuers are probably not essential and our refund check is going to be delayed. ☹ ETA: the Florida court system was a week from a shutdown, too, but Governor Baby-Eater just approved a $50 million stopgap funding measure. I definitely would have noticed _that._ ---
**Author:** ![Moonlitherial](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4bbf92/32.png) [@Moonlitherial](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moonlitherial)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2011, 2:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-federal-government-shutdown-will-you-notice/577580/48 "2011-04-08T14:55:19Z")
Damn it. I just realized I have my Nexus interview scheduled on the American side since they had faster appointment availability. What are the odds this will last until the end of the month (if it happens)? ---
**Author:** ![Autolycus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/22d042/32.png) [@Autolycus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Autolycus)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2011, 2:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-federal-government-shutdown-will-you-notice/577580/49 "2011-04-08T14:57:42Z")
> [@The\_Niply\_Elder](#): > > Well, in my case I accidentally laundered my passport along with my jeans, and I almost did not get into Argentina last week due to its condition (my Argentinean DNI helped smooth things over at the last minute). If I get called to go to Japan for work related business before I can renew it I’m definatelly effed. How bad a condition is it in? I went to Japan once with a laundered (as in put in the laundry) passport, and I got off with a stern warning. For me, since I currently live in Japan, I doubt I would feel any effect. Regardless, I read the news so I’m sure I would at least notice. ---
**Author:** ![Steve\_MB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/steve_mb/32/5339_2.png) [@Steve\_MB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Steve_MB)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2011, 3:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-federal-government-shutdown-will-you-notice/577580/50 "2011-04-08T15:09:51Z")
> [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](#): > > I didn’t think I would notice, but it just occurred to me that IRS refund issuers are probably not essential and our refund check is going to be delayed. ☹ That’s the 800-pound gorilla – there are millions of people out there planning to spend their refund checks on everything from essentials like rent and food to fluff like vacations and cool electronic doodads, and now the politicians are holding that hostage. I’m sure John Boehner is wondering whether a jury would convict him if he strangled the next Tea Party freshman who held a public “Hell, Yeah, Shut It Down!” pep rally… ---
**Author:** ![you\_with\_the\_face](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/ecccb3/32.png) [@you\_with\_the\_face](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/you_with_the_face)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2011, 3:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-federal-government-shutdown-will-you-notice/577580/51 "2011-04-08T15:37:55Z")
Don’t want to brag and incite a riot fueled by jealously up in here, but I was just informed that I’m essential and so I’ll have to work. Without pay. God bless America. ---
**Author:** ![Kaio](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/c68b51/32.png) [@Kaio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kaio)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2011, 3:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-federal-government-shutdown-will-you-notice/577580/52 "2011-04-08T15:49:02Z")
The last day of my temp job is today, and I’ll need to re-open my current unemployment claim on Monday. No idea if I’ll be able to or not. If not, I’ll be well-screwed, since I doubt they’ll give me back pay for not being able to get into a closed office. (Their phone/website automated system has never seemed to be able to handle re-opening my claim, no idea why not.) So, kinda anxious about it. ---
**Author:** ![C3](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/c3/32/3108_2.png) [@C3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/C3)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2011, 3:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-federal-government-shutdown-will-you-notice/577580/53 "2011-04-08T15:52:15Z")
I don’t think it’ll affect me in any obvious way (we’ve already received and spent our tax refund), but we’re getting ready to make an offer on a house. Our mortgage lender told us that it usually takes a few weeks for them to get tax records from the IRS - that’ll probably get stretched out if this goes on for very long. Not a big deal to us, but the seller might get itchy. Are there any other federal entities that get involved in a conventional loan? ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2011, 4:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-federal-government-shutdown-will-you-notice/577580/54 "2011-04-08T16:22:26Z")
> [@Kaio](#): > > The last day of my temp job is today, and I’ll need to re-open my current unemployment claim on Monday. > > No idea if I’ll be able to or not. If not, I’ll be well-screwed, since I doubt they’ll give me back pay for not being able to get into a closed office. (Their phone/website automated system has never seemed to be able to handle re-opening my claim, no idea why not.) > > So, kinda anxious about it. Your UE claim would normally be administered by a state agency… ---
**Author:** ![RTFirefly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c77e96/32.png) [@RTFirefly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RTFirefly)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2011, 4:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-federal-government-shutdown-will-you-notice/577580/55 "2011-04-08T16:27:42Z")
> [@Tom\_Tildrum](#): > > OPM’s statement is essentially just a political prediction. It’s true that under current federal law, the Government cannot accept unpaid volunteer services, but Congress can incorporate exceptions to that law into whatever legislation finally ends the shutdown. Politically, it would be hard to stiff any workers who actually had to work. Here’s [OPM’s statement](http://www.opm.gov/furlough/): > [@](#): > > Q: Will excepted employees be paid for performing work during a shutdown furlough? If so, when will excepted employees receive such payments? > A: Agencies **will incur obligations to pay for services performed by excepted employees** during a lapse in appropriations, and those employees will be paid when Congress passes and the President signs a new appropriation or continuing resolution. Bolding mine. I’m not reading that as a political prediction at all. (And finally noticing that bit of language is what caused me to reverse my initial reply to **Edward the Head**.) They’re saying that defining some employees as excepted, and requiring them to work during the furlough, is incurring an obligation on the part of the government - and that obligation will have to be satisfied once there’s money to do so, even if Congress is silent on the subject. As for me, my wife and I will be on furlough if the government shuts down. I’ve got multiple projects at home that need attending to, so I’m rooting for the shutdown. Best of all, unlike with a normal vacation, I won’t have a few hundred emails waiting for me when I get back, and a pile of new work that’s accumulated during my absence. So a shutdown is, from my perspective, **better** than a normal vacation. Sure, I may not get paid, but one of the realities of being a parent of a young child is that you have almost no spare time, so trading money for time (mostly in the form of hiring babysitters and a cleaning lady) is just what we do anyway. This is really no different. If they ultimately pay us, then it’s getting time for free, rather than having to pay for it. That would be a win every which way, but I’m not counting on it. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2011, 4:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-federal-government-shutdown-will-you-notice/577580/56 "2011-04-08T16:33:26Z")
IIRC, everyone who had to work got back pay after the '95 shutdown. ---
**Author:** ![TruCelt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/trucelt/32/523_2.png) [@TruCelt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TruCelt)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2011, 4:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-federal-government-shutdown-will-you-notice/577580/57 "2011-04-08T16:44:17Z")
I’m just in the process of writing letters to 50-60 small businesses explaining that they won’t be able to make payroll next month because their Congresspeople can’t get their jobs done. (Federal contractor - managing subcontractors.) I am highly pi$$ed off, and it makes me sick to think that any of these twits might get relected after failing the American people so wholly and completely. ---
**Author:** ![Taters](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/taters/32/2845_2.png) [@Taters](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Taters)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2011, 5:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-federal-government-shutdown-will-you-notice/577580/58 "2011-04-08T17:22:24Z")
Yeah, I got paid for my furlough time back in 95/96. However, I was only furloughed for less than a week. I was one of the lucky ones. I’ll have to report to work on Monday too, just to be told to go home. I really hope that Congress and the President get this sorted out. One Congressman had a town meeting with federal employees and told them this could run through May! Why? Because they plan on taking their spring break starting the 18th. That is utterly contemptible. ---
**Author:** ![Oredigger77](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/oredigger77/32/3181_2.png) [@Oredigger77](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Oredigger77)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2011, 5:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-federal-government-shutdown-will-you-notice/577580/59 "2011-04-08T17:47:05Z")
A majorty of my job is working in a national forest or with various indian tribes. We are all wonder what will happen when the BLM and BIA get shut down and how long they will let us go without inspections before we’re shut down too. I’m also rushing to get a bunch of permits into their office so that once they open up I’ll be slightly ahead of the rush. I’ll notice but if it goes long enough I’ll start getting a paid vacation so it’s not the end of the world. ---
**Author:** ![Kaio](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/c68b51/32.png) [@Kaio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kaio)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2011, 6:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-federal-government-shutdown-will-you-notice/577580/60 "2011-04-08T18:02:12Z")
> [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](#): > > Your UE claim would normally be administered by a state agency… I’m currently on one of the federal emergency tiers, hence the “I don’t know.” Could go either way? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-federal-government-shutdown-will-you-notice/577580.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-federal-government-shutdown-will-you-notice/577580.md?page=4)