Since January 20, 2025, the federal government has shut down three times. A government shutdown is not an act of nature. It is a decision, or the absence of one. We document both.
Shutdown 1 (March 2025 — brief):
Government funding lapsed briefly in March 2025 over spending disputes.
Resolved quickly; limited operational impact.
Shutdown 2 (October 1 - November 12, 2025):
Longest government shutdown in US history: 43 days.
~670,000 federal workers furloughed.
~730,000 worked without pay.
Caused by failure to pass appropriations legislation.
Impact: national parks closed, federal courts operating on reduced capacity, federal contractors disrupted.
Resolution: continuing resolution eventually passed.
Shutdown 3 (DHS/TSA, resolved April 30, 2026):
Department of Homeland Security funding lapsed, beginning what became the longest partial-agency shutdown in US history.
TSA agents missed multiple paychecks.
DHS described result as "record breaking wait times stretching hours and hours long causing missed flights, unnecessary delays, and booking headaches".
March 27 executive action directed DHS to pay TSA employees while the broader funding dispute continued.
Senate passed a bipartisan bill; House had initially rejected it.
Resolution: On April 30, 2026, President Trump signed bipartisan legislation funding most of the Department of Homeland Security — but notably excluding DHS’s immigration enforcement operations from the funding bill. The bill passed Congress on a bipartisan basis. The DHS shutdown that began before the existing 43-day record shutdown was documented as the longest DHS funding lapse in US history. (Source: AP News, The Intelligencer)
Status: Resolved April 30, 2026.