The recent government shutdown, which lasted for 43 days, marked the longest in U.S. history, significantly impacting federal workers and millions of Americans reliant on government programs. The shutdown deepened worries about explosive growth and economic sustainability as people lost work and income in every sector of the arts and culture ecosystem during this extraordinary time.
At the height of the shutdown, about 670,000 federal employees were furloughed, to BPC’s Federal Workforce Analysis tool’s data. This event was disastrous not just to those workers themselves, but created a ripple effect across the economy. That’s because an estimated 730,000 of those federal employees were forced to work without pay, compounding the fiscal worries for countless families nationwide.
In a rare display of bipartisan cooperation, six Democratic House members actively participated in the effort alongside eight Democratic senators. Together, they crossed both parties’ leadership to deliver votes in favor of reopening the government. Their actions made clear the time for breaking the stalemate must come. At that point, the shutdown was already causing immense damage to both the economy and public services.
The shutdown had an immediate negative impact on the 42 million SNAP recipients. This was a particularly harmful time to lose their benefits. The unplanned halt of these critical services put many families in a place where they were unable to afford basic needs.
The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) estimated that the shutdown resulted in a permanent loss of $11 billion in inflation-adjusted GDP. This translates to an annualized loss of 0.8%, illustrating the economic cost the shutdown exacted on the country. The economy just squeaked by on a growth of 1.6% average annualized in the first six months of 2025. That means it will take years to fully recover from such a major disruption.
The shutdown also disrupted the labor market. Two full-month jobs reports were lost to the impasse, creating significant confusion about how employment was changing underneath the surface during those two months. The shutdown’s effects on the economy have been nothing short of catastrophic. As such, nearly 60,000 workers in the non-federal government workforce have been thrown out of work.
Transportation services faced considerable challenges as well. The closure quickly resulted in air-traffic chaos, canceling an estimated 6% of all scheduled flights at 40 large hubs. Passengers were subjected to delays and cancellations, adding insult to injury for affected air travelers during this historic upheaval.
The impact on public sentiment about the state of the economy was bruising. The University of Michigan announced the biggest drop in consumer optimism on record. This tepid reading is indicative of low inflation levels not seen since the pandemic peak in 2022. This drop in confidence is a good example of how the federal government’s failure to meet funding deadlines has real world consequences for the average citizen.
It’s the first time in history that this shutdown wasn’t an outlier. Since 1977, the U.S. government has missed funding deadlines 20 times in a row. Every occurrence has ignited conversations about the importance of fiscal responsibility and has pointed out just how toxic the political atmosphere over federal funding has become.
