What’s Open and What’s Closed in a Federal Government Shutdown

With Congress in a stalemate over the budget, a federal government shutdown began Monday night, closing popular national parks including Mount Rainier and Olympic National Parks.

The deadline for Congress to pass a budget was midnight eastern time, and if no agreement is reached by then, many government operations will grind to a halt.

The webpages for the park system itself were down with the following message:

"Because of the federal government shutdown, all national parks are closed and National Park Service webpages are not operating."

Mount Rainier National Park attracts more than 1 million annually.

What else can you expect during a government shutdown?

The postal service will deliver mail.

Federal courts will stay open for about 10 days before furloughs start interrupting normal business, according to NBC.

Air traffic controllers and airport screeners will remain at their posts.

Embassies and consulates around the world will stay open. The Immigration and Customs Enforcement will watch the borders and process Green Card applications.

While some civilian Pentagon bureaucrats will be furloughed, the 1.4 million active service military personnel will stay on duty. So will the Coast Guard.

Veterans will still be able to visit hospitals and receive their benefits, but some appeals for denied services may be postponed.

Food stamps will continue for a month, but WIC will close, according to CNN.

Medicare payments will be made.

NASA will keep mission control open. The National Weather Service will provide weather forecasts.

You’ll still have to pay your federal taxes, but the IRS will put audits on hold.

Don’t see the government agency or program you’re looking for? Here’s a pretty comprehensive list from CNN.