The United States Congress has finally agreed to end the longest government shutdown in its history. For 43 days, the federal government was closed, leaving many Americans without paychecks, benefits or access to critical services. While the effects may feel distant for some students, the shutdown directly affected the Tulane University community — and its ripple effects will continue after the reopening.
The shutdown began just after midnight on Oct. 1, when Congress failed to pass a 2026 federal budget. In the U.S., government spending plans must be approved by both chambers of Congress before the president can sign them into law. The disagreement over the 2026 budget mostly centers around healthcare. In short, Democrats wanted to include an extension of tax credits that make health insurance more affordable and reverse the Trump administration’s cuts to Medicaid, a program that supports low-income, elderly and disabled Americans. Republicans argued that these measures are too costly.
The result was over a month of political deadlock.
The shutdown caused anxiety among the 41 million Americans who rely on the federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program — commonly known as food stamps — which was jeopardized by the shutdown. Louisiana has one of the highest rates of food insecurity, and as of June 2024, over 20% of people living in Orleans Parish received SNAP benefits. Many states — including Louisiana — used emergency funds to fill short-term federal funding gaps, and funding for the program was restored with the end of the shutdown.
Thousands of federal employees, such as park rangers and air traffic controllers, were put on leave or forced to work without pay. National parks and monuments closed, federally funded preschools shut down and basic government services stalled. The effects were devastating for Americans, and they extended into Tulane’s campus as well — including delays to federal work-study programs, Free Application for Federal Student Aid processing and research funding tied to federal grants.
This has direct impacts on Tulane community members. Even if your daily routine has not changed, millions of Americans were impacted because elected officials could not find common ground.
If that is not reason enough, the Tulane community may continue to feel the consequences of the shutdown in the coming weeks. Transportation Security Administration agents and air traffic controllers have gone weeks without pay, forcing airlines to cancel or reduce flights. For the 85% of Tulane students who are from out of state, this potentially means real travel disruptions, which can be problematic with Thanksgiving break right around the corner.
But travel is only part of the story. Students relying on visa services might continue to see delays as agencies recover from operational backlogs if their untimely filing is not considered a primary effect of the shutdown.
The deadlock was finally resolved when eight senators who caucus with the Democrats voted in favor of a plan backed by Republicans. The bill, now awaiting final approval, will fund the government through Jan. 30, 2026, and promises to rehire furloughed workers and prevent further layoffs. This version of the bill does not extend the enhanced health subsidies, which angered many Democratic politicians. Instead, Senate Republican Majority Leader John Thune pledged to hold a vote for the expiring health subsidies in December.
However, the government will take some time to reopen, meaning the shutdown will continue to affect Americans even after the bill is signed into law. New Orleanians who depend on federal systems may continue to experience delays during the restart process.
Whether the shutdown affected you directly or not, thousands of Americans temporarily lost benefits and paychecks, and Tulanians were not insulated from these disruptions.