On midnight of October 1, the federal government went into a shutdown after the U.S. Congress could not pass a budget or a continuing resolution (CR) to fund the government. The House of Representatives passed a flat-funding CR on September 19 by a vote of 217-212. The Senate voted on both the House-passed CR and a Senate Democratic alternative that included additional provisions focused on expiring health care programs on September 19, and again on September 30, with all votes failing to reach the needed 60-vote threshold.

 

Before the shutdown, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) released its contingency plan for a shutdown.  FIFRA and pesticide activities are mentioned on pages 2 and 14.

 

EPA has also created a website about its plans in the event of a lapse in appropriations. The contingency is posted on the website, along with some other information for EPA employees. When asked about OPP operational status, EPA is referring people to this website and the provision that lists activities for FIFRA (maintenance) fees allowing activities funded by these fees to continue. It currently appears that most people at OPP are working and EPA will assess its funding on a regular basis to determine operations during the shutdown.