How much do government shutdowns cost American taxpayers?

Question

The shutdown began on Wednesday, Oct. 1, after Democrats refused to support legislation extending government funding into fiscal year 2026. Republicans have put forward clean bills to restart government operations, while Democrats have pressed for an extension of enhanced ObamaCare subsidies implemented during the pandemic that are set to sunset at the end of this year. 

While a shutdown of the federal government's operations may seem as though it would reduce federal spending, that hasn't been the case in past shutdowns due to the costs of compensating federal workers with their back pay, suspending and resuming government operations, and foregone economic activity.

Essential federal workers are continuing to work during the shutdown and will forgo paychecks until funding is restored, while workers deemed non-essential have been furloughed and will also receive back pay under federal law.

A 2019 report by the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee found that the three prior government shutdowns cost at least $3.7 billion in back pay to federal workers for 54 furlough days between those three shutdowns. 

It also identified $338 million in other costs stemming from the shutdowns, such as extra administrative work, lost revenue and late fees on interest payments. The elevated administrative workload comes from federal workers having to prepare for a shutdown before it begins, as well as taking steps to restore normal operations once it ends.

The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) wrote in a letter to Sen. Joni Ernst, R-Iowa, before the shutdown that about 750,000 workers may be furloughed at a cost of about $400 million per day. 

Answer 1

Thank you for asking this question because I have also been thinking about this! After looking at a different article written by The Washington Post, I read that the last shutdown lasted 34 days and cost the government $11 billion. That shutdown occurred during President Trump's first term in office. I agree with your take on government employees suffering during the shutdown because they can't work during that time however, once a deal is reached, they must be paid back for the time off. However, this affects the government and American taxpayers as they now will have to pay for the days of lost work. On the Brightside, Vice President JD Vance said that the shutdown would "Not last long". “I think you already saw some evidence that moderate Democrats are cracking a little, but they understand the fundamental illogic of this,” Vance told reporters at the White House.
2.  - I appreciated how the article explained what this shutdown really means to help someone who is unsure or confused about what it all means as a citizen.
4. From what I can see, the article I read written by The Washington Post, doesn't seem to have bias on the situation. Typically, in the media nowadays we see a lot of hate and bias towards either side and I don't see the article blaming Democrats or Republicans, just relaying the facts and information that we know and should expect.
5. Supporting evidence includes direct correlation between both articles

Comments

Although I agree that this post may possibly be true, I would have appreciated if you had linked the sources that you used with this answer, including the Washington Post. I did appreciate the way that you made this feel very relatable, coming off as a fellow citizen worried about their financial situation and how it is affected by a government shutdown.