After more than two weeks, work resumed at federal offices, public parks, research projects and community programs in the wake of the newly-ended government shutdown. Museums opened their doors and money for preschool programs flowed again. National parks reopened. Life resumed.
The 16-day government shutdown prevented us from visiting national parks, obtaining a passport or driver license, maybe even resulted in massive garbage pileups in our back yards; we’re relieved the hiatus is over. Nevertheless, we may find ourselves dealing with a few lingering unpleasantries.
Shorter Tax Season, Delayed Refunds
Hopefully you weren’t in a hurry to get your tax refund. The IRS just announced it could delay tax refunds for millions of early filers by one or two weeks. The IRS won’t start processing returns until at least Jan. 28 and possibly as late as Feb. 4, instead of the planned start date of January 21. Should the government shut down again in January over budget talks scheduled as part of the deal to reopen the federal government, refunds could be tied up even longer. Oh, and if you were actually getting excited about tax season starting later, don’t: tax day is still April 15.
Less Business Over Holidays
Sixteen days of no government services took $24 billion out of the American economy. The stall in cash flow caused by hundreds of thousands of federal workers put on furlough during the standoff could mean less spending over the holidays. This news is more than unwelcome if you already missed out on a much-needed business loan during the shutdown.
Food Poisoning
Federally-employed meat inspectors are considered “essential” personnel, but other food inspectors were furloughed during the government shutdown. The Food and Drug Administration put off about 200 planned inspections a week and more than 8,700 inspections the federal government contracts state officials to perform during the government hiatus. A horrifying 976 of the FDA’s 1,602 inspectors were sent home. The shutdown slowed the FDA’s response to salmonella outbreaks in chicken that sickened people in 18 states. The question now is how much uninspected food is still floating around.
Unemployment
During the shutdown, more than 400,000 employers were unable to use E-verify to check their employees’ immigration and eligibility status. And while E-verify’s being back up and running is good news, many employers are still hesitant to hire with economic pessimism looming. Starting October 1 (the first day of the shutdown), government contractors and other companies affected by the shutdown imposed temporary layoffs. Until everyone knows what’s going to happen after January 15, employers will likely remain hesitant to hire.
The government shutdown was a bit of an inconvenience. Many Americans are still frustrated, especially with the threat of another shutdown as soon as early next year. If you want to keep your job, you may want to scurry into an “essential federal personnel” job, eh?
