LETTER TO THE EDITOR / The Personal Impact of the Shutdown

By Albert L. Kelley

As I write this on December 26, 2018 we are on Day 5 of the Government Shutdown. We are likely to face at least another seven days before it will be even close to ending, and it could last weeks longer than that. For many people, the shutdown is merely something discussed on the news and at most an inconvenience. While the President and Congress are trying to force the other to capitulate, for them there is no price except a possible but unlikely political price at the next election. But what most people won’t see is the price to the individuals who are personally affected, in many cases, those whose job is to protect our borders and our safety. This is the irony. In an effort to protect our borders, we are hurting the ones who do that job- the Coast Guard and Homeland Security.

During the shutdown, many federal employees will not receive their regular paychecks. They will get paid eventually, but not until the shutdown ends. If the shutdown ends tomorrow, the impact will likely be relatively minimal. But if the shutdown continues, the impact could be drastic and life threatening.

Most Americans live paycheck to paycheck. In a recent study it was reported that 63% of Americans have no emergency savings. Payday for federal employees is December 28, 2018. Because the shutdown did not begin until December 21, 2018, those checks should still be sent out, although in some cases they may be smaller than usual as employees will not be paid if they worked on December 22, 2018. And they will not receive any more paychecks until the shutdown ends. That means those employees relying on their next paycheck to pay rent may not have it. And the Landlords do not have to wait for the shutdown to end. Once rent is due, landlords have the right to give their tenants a three day notice to pay rent or vacate. Once that notice is delivered, the federal employees will have three business days to come up with the rent or be evicted. If the shutdown has not ended by then, they may not be able to pay the rent. While the eviction process takes a couple of weeks, under Florida law, once the three day notice period is over, the landlord is under no obligation to accept late rent and is entitled to evict the tenant. That means that thousands of families could find themselves homeless, even if the shutdown gets resolved before the eviction process is over.

Once homeless, these employees – and their families- will need to find a new place to live. But without a paycheck they will not be able to pay first, last and security. And that is assuming they can even find another place to move to. What are their options? They could live in their cars, but unless they are in Key West, the winter weather could make that potentially fatal. With low temperatures in north Florida traditionally in the 30’s, hypothermia is a reality. And to keep a car running is not only pricey, but potentially exposes the inhabitants to carbon monoxide poisoning. And if the federal employee does not have a car the options are even less.

Another impact that is not thought about is the time constraints this will put on those employees. There are forms to be prepared to fight the eviction and hearings to attend. The employees may have to choose between attending court or reporting to work. Missing either one is a high risk.

But the more important impact is stress. While we all hope the shutdown is short, there is no sign of it ending soon. For those who are personally impacted, the stress of losing their homes, not knowing how they will get money to feed their families, how they will handle the costs of day-to-day living and the uncertainty of their own future may be too much. This can lead to mental breakdowns or at worst suicide.

This is not a small issue. Across the country it is estimated that 800,000 federal employees will not be paid until the shutdown ends. Many of these people are the sole breadwinner for their families. So the shutdown doesn’t just affect the employee-it affects their spouses and children. We could be talking about adding over two million people to the list of the homeless- adults and children. And we could be talking about actual loss of life. This is the real and personal impact of the shutdown.

Al Kelley is a Florida business law attorney located in Key West and previously taught business law, personnel law and labor law at St. Leo University. He is also the author of four law books: (“Basics of Business Law” “Basics of Florida’s Small Claims Court”, “Basics of Florida’s Landlord/Tenant Law” and “Basics of Starting a Florida Business” (Absolutely Amazing e-Books)).

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