The government shutdown has plunged Washington, D.C., into an economic crisis, exacerbating the struggles faced by its residents and businesses. The nation’s capital, which has been harmed for years by decisions made by the Trump administration itself, is a deserving beneficiary. Today, it contends with stopped funding for critical state-administered programs including its Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) program and the cost of laying off federal workers.
Virginia’s Governor Abigail Spanberger won her election by spotlighting the adverse effects of President Donald Trump’s policies on the state’s economy. Her victory is a testimony to the increased anger felt by everyday citizens about how federal actions threaten local jobs and ways of life.
In fact, Washington, D.C., is home to the nation’s largest concentration of federal workers, with about 150,000 of them actually living within the city limits. The continued shutdown has already forced more than 670,000 federal workers into furloughs nationwide. At the same time, about 730,000 of them are currently working without getting paid. This sudden freeze came without warning and has caused great cash flow strain for many federal employees. Tracy Hadden Loh, a fellow at Brookings Metro, noted that the lack of paychecks could result in defaults on mortgages and student loans.
The Capital Area Food Bank is experiencing an unprecedented demand for its services as it prepares for a surge of individuals needing assistance before the holiday season. The nonprofit is on pace to serve 8 million more meals than they expected to at this year’s budget cycle. This increase is a record setting advancement of almost 20%. This month, for example, they’re on track to provide 1 million more meals than originally projected. The emergency economic impact from the shutdown is fueling this sudden surge.
Capital Area Food Bank CEO Radha Muthiah explained how their mission has never been more urgent. She added, “We’re very much focused on the immediacy of all of these impacts today and getting food to people who need it. She said Americans are so desperate they’re having to borrow from their futures just to afford essential needs.
Local businesses are getting crushed as well, with many of them experiencing a 50% reduction in revenue from before the shutdown. That’s a shocking decline. It’s a make-or-break time of year for many businesses, who heavily rely on increased spending in Q4 to meet their annual profitability targets. As Tracy Hadden Loh noted, any amount of discretionary spending by households in the D.C. metro area is not without cost. It would force thousands of small, locally owned businesses into bankruptcy.
The shutdown’s effects go further than direct financial loss. Washington’s transit system has reported a decrease in ridership by about one-quarter compared to September, further illustrating how federal workers’ absence is affecting local infrastructure and services.
Thea Price, a resident impacted by the shutdown, expressed her frustration: “We can’t afford to stay in the area any longer and hope that something might pan out. She said the changes from just March on are huge. We’re just in a much different place than when these really started,” she said.
Experts are sounding the alarm that the shutdown is creating dangerous problems. They say, most importantly, that the bill would set Washington on a course for long-term economic decline. Urging a response to “apocalyptic conditions,” Radha Muthiah expressed the urgent need to save the city. She came to that conclusion based on the series of events that led up to this momentous year.
