Congress has until Friday, November 17 to pass a funding package to again avoid a federal government shutdown. With an original deadline of September 30, Congress passed a last-minute bill (a continuing resolution; “CR”) that extended funding for an additional 47 days—taking us to November 17.
Newly elected Speaker of the House Mike Johnson over the weekend unveiled a two-tiered plan: Part 1, according to CNN, would extend funding until January 19 for select government agencies, including military construction, Veterans Affairs, transportation, housing and the Energy Department; Part 2 would extend funding until February 2, covering the rest of the government. The fallout from the last near-shutdown resulted in then-House Speaker Kevin McCarthy being vacated from his role after a vote. It was the first time a speaker was removed from their role during a legislative session.
A shutdown would severely impact travel. Air traffic controller training would be suspended and Transportation Security Administration, air traffic controllers and select other government employees would be required to work without pay. Like the last shutdown in 2018, it’s likely a high number of TSA workers and air traffic controllers will call out of work, refusing to work for free. As a result, we could see increased flight delays/cancelations as well as longer wait times at airports. Other air travel-related issues include delays in passport and Global Entry processing.
This time around, however, a shutdown would happen the week of Thanksgiving, already one of the busiest travel times of the year. In fact, according to AAA, 4.69 million people are expected to fly this Thanksgiving—the highest number of Thanksgiving air travelers since 2005. Tuesday and Wednesday before Thanksgiving are the busiest air travel days ahead of the holiday and the most expensive. While Sunday is typically the busiest day to return home, AAA data shows Monday is also a popular day to fly back after Thanksgiving. In all, 55.37 million Americans will be traveling 50 miles or more from home over the Thanksgiving holiday travel period.
A shutdown could last into the Christmas holiday, as well; in 2018, the federal government shuttered for 35 days.
Said the U.S. Travel Association on the potential shutdown: “Without the passage of a funding package by November 17, the federal government will shut down—increasing concerns of disruptions to holiday travel plans for millions of Americans ahead of the peak holiday travel period. U.S. Travel urges immediate action to avoid a federal government shutdown, which is estimated to cost the travel economy up to $140 million a day or nearly $1 billion each week.”
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