Partial Shutdown Truce (For Now): President and Congress Agree to 3-Week Deal

On Friday, January 23 the President announced an end to the longest-running shutdown in U.S. history (36 days). Congress and the President agreed to a short-term deal that would re-open the roughly 25 percent of government that was shut down until February 15. This deal seeks to give Congress time to advance negotiations on funding for border security while allowing roughly 800,000 furloughed federal employees to return to work and receive back pay during that time.

While I/DD supports were generally insulated from the shutdown, the shutdown still had deep effects on people with disabilities, as ANCOR’s Director of Legislative Affairs Sarah Meek discussed with Disability Scoop. The shutdown put people with disabilities’ access to food stamps and housing supports on the line as funding started to run low, as well as new Direct Support Professionals’ access to background checks necessary for them to start work.

ANCOR will keep members informed of relevant developments as Congress begins its negotiations to resolve the stand-off over border security funding and how it may affect services.