Minnesota leaders outline potential effects of federal government shutdown
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As the federal government shutdown extended into a second day on Thursday, state leaders outlined some of the potential impacts on Minnesota — including thousands of federal employees at risk of being furloughed and funding for nutrition programs and clean energy projects in limbo.
Gov. Tim Walz and budget officials said the state had been doing some preparation over the past few weeks, expecting that a shutdown might happen if Republicans and Democrats in Congress couldn’t agree on a spending resolution to keep the federal government open.
And they said the initial impacts of the shutdown aren’t that significant for programs run by the state. Many have enough funding to keep them going, for now. But if the shutdown drags on, it could affect programs that thousands of Minnesotans rely on.
“We know that the longer a shutdown lasts, the more likely that critical services such as Head Start or veterans’ benefits will be impacted over time,” Minnesota Budget Director Ahna Minge said, adding that SNAP and WIC benefits could run out by November.
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Not including U.S. Postal Service workers, Minge said there are about 18,000 federal employees in Minnesota. She said it’s not yet clear — based on federal guidance just being issued — how many will be temporarily out of work.
“We don’t know at this time exactly how many of those employees will be furloughed, but we know that each department is impacted in different ways. For example, the Department of Veterans Affairs published contingency plans that suggest that they will furlough very few workers, while the Department of Agriculture looks like they will furlough about half,” Minge said.
The Trump administration has also threatened to lay off federal employees furloughed during the shutdown.
Clean energy funding
Minnesota could also challenge efforts by the Trump administration to cut funding for clean energy projects in the state.
Politico reported on Wednesday that the White House budget director wants to pull project funding for 16 states — including Minnesota — that President Donald Trump did not win in his election bid last year.
Minge says much of the funding in question is going to private entities in the state, but it could also hit some grant money that goes to the Minnesota Department of Commerce.
Walz on Thursday called out the potential funding cuts as a political act.
“If we need to challenge in court, we’ll challenge in court. But this idea that you’ve got to go and kiss the ring, or you’ve got to go and give some type of award to get basic services that he swore an oath to defend, that is outrageous,” Walz told reporters.
