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Construction cones used to cover walkway flaws stand along the sidewalk on Capitol Hill in Washington on Friday. On the edge of a government shutdown, a divided House voted late Thursday to keep the government open past a Friday deadline – setting up an eleventh-hour stand-off in the Senate, where Democrats have vowed to kill the measure. Photo: AP

The US government is poised to shut down after vote fails – here’s what that actually means

If Democrats and Republicans do not agree to a deal soon, the US government could shut down - which will spell chaos across the country

US President Donald Trump and Congress are racing to meet a midnight Friday deadline to pass a short-term bill to keep the government open and prevent agencies from shutting down.

In shutdowns, government employees are vulnerable to furlough, or temporary unpaid leave. Other “essential” workers, including those dealing with public safety and national security, keep working, some with and others without pay.

After previous government shutdowns, Congress passed measures to ensure that essential and non-essential employees received retroactive pay.

The last shutdown in October 2013 lasted more than two weeks. More than 800,000 federal employees were furloughed. Here is what to expect if the same happens tonight.

Travel

Air and rail travellers did not feel a big impact in 2013 because security officers and air traffic controllers remained at work. Passport processing continued with some delays.

National parks

National parks closed in 2013, resulting in a loss of 750,000 daily visitors, said the non-profit National Parks Conservation Association.

The National Park Service (NPS) estimated the shutdown cost $500 million in lost visitor spending in areas around the parks and the Smithsonian museums.

This time, however, The US Interior Department has said it plans to let the public visit most open-air monuments, wilderness-type restrooms and facilities that do not depend on government staffing.

Gift shops, restaurants and other concessionaires inside parks may be permitted to continue operations as long as they remove snow and trash without government staff.

A man gazes over the partially frozen falls at the Paterson Great Falls National Historical Park on January 2. The US government says that national parks will be kept open in the event of a shutdown – but they must remove snow and trash without government staff. Photo: AP

Washington tourist sites

In 2013, popular tourist sites such as the Smithsonian closed, with barricades going up at the Lincoln Memorial, the Library of Congress and the National Archives. The National Zoo closed and its popular “Panda Cam” went dark.

The NPS, which oversees many Washington landmarks, including the National Mall, has said it has a plan in place so that “First Amendment activities” can continue during a shutdown.

Mail delivery

Deliveries are expected to continue as usual because the US Postal Service gets no tax dollars for day-to-day operations

Justice

The Justice Department has many “essential” workers. Under its shutdown contingency plan, about 95,000 of the department’s almost 115,000 staff would keep working.

Military

The defence department said on Friday that a shutdown would not impact the US military’s war in Afghanistan or its operations against Islamist militants in Iraq and Syria. All military personnel on active duty would remain on normal duty status. Civilian personnel in non-essential operations would be furloughed.

US forces are seen in Afghanistan on Monday. US military movements in Afghanistan, Iraq and Syria will not be affected by a shutdown. Phoo: AP

Financial oversight

The stock market-policing Securities and Exchange Commission funds itself by collecting fees from the financial industry, but its budget is set by Congress.

It has said in the past it would be able to continue operations temporarily in a shutdown. But it would have to furlough workers if Congress went weeks before approving new funding.

The Commodity Futures Trading Commission, meanwhile, would have to furlough 95 pe rcent of its employees immediately.

An agency spokeswoman said the derivatives regulator could call in additional staff, however, in the event of financial market emergency.

Taxes

The Internal Revenue Service furloughed 90 per cent of its staff in 2013, the liberal Center for American Progress said. About $4 billion in tax refunds were delayed as a result, according to the Office of Management and Budget, or OMB.

Courts

The Administrative Office of the US Courts has said federal courts, including the Supreme Court, could continue to operate normally for about three weeks without additional funding.

Energy

The Department of Energy said on Friday that since most of its appropriations are for multiple years, employees should report to work as normal during a shutdown until told otherwise. If there was a prolonged lapse in funding a “limited number” of workers may be placed on furlough, according to its plan.

Health care

Sign-ups for the newly created Obamacare health insurance exchanges began as scheduled in 2013. The Medicare health insurance programme for the elderly continued largely without disruption.

A programme at the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to track flu outbreaks was temporarily halted. Hundreds of patients could not enrol in National Institutes of Health clinical trials, according to the OMB.

The last government shutdown, in 2013, affected a US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention programme to track flu outbreaks, along with National Institutes of Health medical trials. File photo: AP

Children

Six Head Start programmes in Alabama, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Mississippi and South Carolina serving about 6,300 children shut for nine days, the OMB said.

Social security

Social Security and disability checks were issued in 2013 with no change in payment dates and field offices remained open but offered limited services. There were delays in the review process for new applicants.

Loans

Processing of mortgages and other loans was delayed when lenders could not access government services such as income and Social Security number verification.

The Small Business Administration was unable to process about 700 applications for US$140 million in loans until the shutdown ended, OMB said.

Veterans

Most employees at the Department of Veterans Affairs would not be subject to furlough. VA hospitals would remain open and veterans’ benefits would continue, but education help and case appeals would be delayed, the department said.

Food inspections

Department of Agriculture meat inspectors stayed on the job. Agricultural statistical reports ceased publication. The USDA’s website went dark.

This report includes additional information from Bloomberg

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