(BIVN) – The federal government has shut down, after the United States Senate failed to reach an agreement late Tuesday night.

“Unfortunately, cooler heads did not prevail tonight, and the government has been forced to shut down,” stated U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D, Hawaiʻi) as the midnight deadline passed in Washington D.C. “As a result, federal workers will be furloughed and programs that support people across Hawai‘i will be interrupted. We will continue working every day to reopen the government, and my office will remain open to help residents in any way we can during this difficult time.”

This is the first shutdown since the record seven-week stoppage that took place in 2018-2019, during President Trump’s first term.

In a newsletter to constituents, Congressman Ed Case (D, Hawaiʻi) offered this statement on “why this shutdown is occurring and what is the solution”:

The President and his Congressional colleagues are in control of Congress, and they are shutting down the government to avoid critical action needed to prevent huge health care cost increases as well as loss of health care coverage for tens of millions of Americans, including tens of thousands of our own in Hawai‘i. Without action, we will see the imminent expiration at the end of this year of key enhanced health insurance premium benefits for those most in need, resulting in doubling of insurance costs and loss of coverage.

The solution is clearly a bipartisan compromise agreement for the good of the country that continues both overall government funding and literally life-and-death health care assistance to tens of millions of Americans. There are lots of ways to do this, and I’ve spent the recent days with like-minded colleagues walking through and advocating for various options under which we could surmount the deep partisanship and crippling my-way-or-the-highway division and achieve a bipartisan compromise vote. Until that happens (and with mutual commitment it can happen in just days), we must deal with the current shutdown as best we can.

President Trump’s White House offers this explanation for the impasse:

It comes as Democrats insist on shutting down the government over their $1.5 trillion demand to give taxpayer-funded benefits to illegal aliens, subsidize woke “public” media, and gut funding for rural hospitals — jeopardizing critical funding for veterans, seniors, law enforcement, women and children in need, and many others.

Impacts to Hawaiʻi

According to information provided by Rep. Case, the federal shutdown means:

• Federal employees whose responsibilities include essential services must work without pay until the shutdown ends, while non-essential federal employees will be furloughed without pay. These employees are guaranteed to receive backpay once the shutdown ends.
• The USS Arizona, Volcanoes National Park and Haleakalā National Park will be closed
• The U.S. Postal Service is not affected
• Federal Emergency Management Agency staff will still respond to emergencies, and agencies involved in disaster response will continue their work.
• Social Security and SSI checks will continue
• There will be no impact on veteran health care as medical facilities and clinics will remain operational
• The Small Business Administration (SBA) will stop processing new business loans, such as through the 7(a) and 504 programs.

The Hawaiʻi Tourism Authority provided an update on how the shutdown will affect travelers, saying:

Essential federal government workers such as air traffic controllers and Transportation Security Administration (TSA) agents will continue to work in the event of a federal shutdown, ensuring safety and security. Travelers may experience longer wait times. Travelers should check with their airline for the status of their flight before heading to the airport. They should also plan to arrive early to the airport to give themselves extra time to pass through TSA security as a precautionary measure.

The HTA noted that although some national parks and wildlife refuges in Hawai‘i will be closed or have limited access during the federal government shutdown, “all state and county parks, beaches, and private businesses, including hotels, activities, attractions, tours, shops, and restaurants, will remain open.”