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Agency outlines furloughs, contract pauses and targeted cuts taken during federal shutdown
Summary
Agency leaders described contingency steps during the federal shutdown: estimated monthly losses, administrative actions including part‑time furloughs for about 2,300 employees, hiring freezes, paused contracts (≈350), restricted overtime and travel, and prioritized services for most vulnerable clients; many actions were later lifted after funds resumed.
Commissioners heard a detailed account of how a recent federal government shutdown affected agency programs and the administrative steps taken to protect vulnerable clients.
A director summarized estimated impacts: an initial mid‑October estimate of roughly $8.9 million in lost funding and a November estimate of about $35 million in monthly impacts if the shutdown had persisted into later months. The agency identified programs that could have been disrupted — including SNAP administration and school nutrition, child care subsidies (CCDF discretionary funding), Older Americans Act services and certain social‑services block grants — and described contingency options it considered.
To avoid abruptly cutting frontline services, the agency chose several administrative actions: a part‑time furlough that affected roughly 2,300 employees (with most low‑income frontline staff exempt), a temporary hiring pause for non‑frontline positions, a suspension of overtime, a temporary freeze on roughly 350 contracts (about 10% of contracts), and suspension of a COVID‑era $5/day school‑age childcare add‑on. The director said these measures prioritized younger children and permitted the agency to maintain core services while awaiting federal clarity.
When the government reopened, funds returned slowly. The agency lifted administrative actions effective Nov. 16, resumed unpausing prioritized contracts and continued to track remaining federal award details (for example, a CR that reduced CCDF by $250 million required further analysis to determine final allocations). Several divisions reported that they received federal draws quickly for certain programs (Disability Determination Services received about $7M within two days of reopening). The director emphasized the decisions were made to protect the most vulnerable clients and preserve agency capacity.
Ending: Agency leaders said they will continue to monitor federal partner communications and restore paused contracts and hiring as appropriations are clarified.
