The United States government officially shut down one minute after midnight on Sept. 30 after Congress and President Donald Trump failed to come to a resolution on a spending bill, leaving active service members and civilian support workers on Northwest Florida bases in limbo.
During a government shutdown, federal agencies are legally prohibited from dispersing funds in any capacity, even making obligations. While nonessential services are halted, essential workers are still required to show up for work without pay.
Military service members are among those workers deemed essential. In Florida, that impacts nearly 82,000 active service members — a large number of whom reside in the Florida Panhandle. In the six military installations across Northwest Florida, there are 39,117 active duty military and 19,955 civilian employees.
The majority of Florida’s 95,167 civilian federal employees work for the Department of War, formerly known as the Department of Defense, and the Department of Veterans Affairs. Civilian employees not needed for essential activities will be furloughed through the shutdown.
Here’s how Florida’s military service members will be impacted by the latest government shutdown.
How is the military impacted during a government shutdown?
All military personnel, who include more than two million people, will continue to report to their posts and carry out their assigned duties through the government shutdown, according to a Sept. 27 contingency plan published by the Department of War.
Civilian personnel who are not necessary to carry out or support excepted activities will be furloughed.
”Only the minimum number of civilian employees necessary to carry out excepted activities will be excepted from furlough,” the plan says.
“The department will continue to defend the nation and conduct ongoing military operations,” the plan says. “It will continue activities funded with any available budgetary resources that have not lapsed, as well as excepted activities such as those necessary for the safety of human life and the protection of property.”
Are military personnel still paid during a government shutdown?
The Antideficiency Act prohibits federal agencies from “obligating or expending federal funds in advance or in excess of an appropriation, and from accepting voluntary services,” the U.S. Government Accountability Office website says.
In other words, military personnel and non-furloughed civilian employees will be expected to continue work without pay. In the past, impacted workers were paid retroactively after a spending bill had been passed.
Members of the Coast Guard, whose payroll liability accrues on a monthly basis, could still be paid depending on the length of the shutdown, according to DHS.
There have been times when Congress has passed separate legislation that allowed military pay and allowances to continue during a government shutdown, like the “Pay Our Military Act” in 2013.
Anticipating the shutdown, Navy Federal Credit Union and USAA announced zero-interest loans, payment relief options and other government shutdown assistance for federal workers.
Navy Federal Credit Union offering zero-interest loans through paycheck assistance program
Navy Federal is pointing members to enroll in its paycheck assistance program, which will allow eligible members to borrow up to $6,000 without fee or interest charges.
Eligible members will need to meet these criteria:
No credit check is required for Navy Federal’s paycheck assistance program.
Loan amounts are determined by the amount of the most recent direct deposit made to the account before the government shutdown.
Navy Federal Credit Union members can enroll online or through the mobile app, but they will need to register by the day before their scheduled pay date to ensure funds are available on time.
USAA offering no-interest loans through government shutdown
USAA is also offering no-interest loans during government shutdown for eligible members, with loans maxing out at $6,000.
Eligible members will need to meet the following criteria:
The loan will need to be repaid within three months of funding. Payments will be split into two equal installments, with the first due in about 60 days and the second due in about 90 days, according to USAA.
At the time of publish, USAA had not opened enrollment into its program. Check back for more details or visit USAA’s website directly.
The Federal Employee Education and Assistance Fund offers emergency hardship loans and shutdown grants
In the past, the Federal Employee Education and Assistance (FEEA) has offered an emergency hardship loan program and government shutdown grants for qualifying full-time federal civilian employees.
The FEEA’s government shutdown grant is meant to cover small expenses like groceries, gas, diapers and other basic necessities. During past shutdowns, these micro-grants have been about $100.
Applications for the grants will open if the shutdown continues beyond the point that federal employees miss all or part of a paycheck.
The emergency hardship loan is part of the FEEA’s regular assistance offerings and does not include pay loss during a government shutdown. However, it can be used as an option if someone experiences any of the following during the shutdown:
How many military service members will be affected in Florida?
Florida had 81,955 active duty military personnel in 2024, according to the Defense Manpower Data Center. Of Florida’s 95,167 civilian federal employees, 37,468 worked for the Department of Veterans Affairs and 33,163 worked for the Department of War, according to the Office of Management and Budget.
What does furlough mean?
A furlough is the “placing of an employee in a temporary nonduty, non-pay status because of lack of work or funds, or other non-disciplinary reasons,” according to the Office of Personnel Management (OPM). When an agency does not have enough funds, such as in the case of a government shutdown, a “shutdown” furlough occurs, and those employees not categorized as “excepted,” or essential, pause their work.
How are reserve component military members affected by the shutdown?
Military reserve service members performing Active Guard Reserve (AGR) will continue to report for duty.
“Reserve component personnel will not perform inactive duty resulting in the obligation of funds, except where such duty directly supports an excepted activity, and may not be ordered to or extended on active duty, including AGR duty, except in support of military operations and activities necessary for national security or disaster response, including fulfilling associated pre-deployment requirements,” the contingency plan states.
Do the Blue Angels perform during a government shutdown?
The latest government shutdown appears to have limited the Blue Angels, disrupting the team’s shows at the California International Airshow and San Francisco Fleet Week, one of the biggest air shows of the season, according to California media outlets.
What happens to the Blue Angels will depend on decisions from military leaders. During the 2013 government shutdown, the U.S. Navy decided to ground the Blue Angels for the remainder of its 2013 show season.
Florida’s nearly 2 dozen military bases impacted by government shutdown
Florida is home to nearly two dozen military bases, including six in the Panhandle.
Naval Air Station Pensacola released a statement on Wednesday morning announcing that public attractions such as the National Naval Aviation Museum, Pensacola Lighthouse and Fort Barrancas will be closed until further notice.
Eglin Air Force Base published a list of customer service areas impacted by the government shutdown. Around 10 locations were listed as closed and eight were operating in a limited capacity.
This article originally appeared on Pensacola News Journal: Will Florida’s 82K military personnel get paid during shutdown? What to know
Reporting by Brandon Girod, Pensacola News Journal / Pensacola News Journal
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
