Attention toU.S. investment immigration andU.S. current events news: On October 1st, theU.S. federal government shut down due to budget issues. The Office of Management and Budget issued an advance notice, requiring departments to prepare contingency plans and determine vacation and personnel arrangements. Based on reports from The Washington Post and The Washington Trade Daily, here is a summary of the operational status of federal departments related to economic and trade matters:
1. Department of Commerce
Of the 46,420 employees, 40,234 have been placed on leave, and departments such as the Census Bureau and the Bureau of Economic Analysis have completely shut down. The WorldWay Administration has 47 employees remaining, and the Bureau of Industry and Security has 150 employees on duty (mostly responsible for export controls related to national security), but the processing of export control license approvals will experience delays.
2. Office of the U.S. Trade Representative
Of the 232 employees, 61 will remain, primarily those involved in negotiations and trade enforcement. In its Geneva delegation, only senior officials will stay on.
3. Department of Agriculture
Of the 100,000 employees, those responsible for food inspection and forestry fire safety will remain on duty. Of the 892 employees in the Foreign Agricultural Service, only 305 will stay, and 3 employees will remain to handle TPP and TPIP negotiation matters.
4. Food and Drug Administration
Of the 14,779 employees, 6,620 will remain, mainly responsible for recalls of highly hazardous products. The FDA will rely on user fees paid to maintain limited operational activities.
5. Export-Import Bank of the United States
Of the 409 employees, only 17 will remain, and all insurance and guarantee programs are suspended.
6. Overseas Private Investment Corporation
Due to its self-funded nature, staff are unaffected. However, since its functions derive from budget appropriation bills, it cannot initiate any new work until the new fiscal year bill is passed.
7. The White House
1,265 employees are on leave, and 436 remain on duty.
8. Department of the Treasury
Of the 110,000 employees, approximately 88% are on leave, with 8,800 of the 95,000 employees in the Internal Revenue Service remaining on duty for tax enforcement. The Department of the Treasury will continue operations in disbursing Social Security payments, tax collection, daily cash management, and interest payments on public debt.
9. Department of State
With its budget coming from a dedicated appropriations bill for State diplomatic and related programs and various other funding sources, most of its departments can continue operating for some time. Consular services will continue running due to their funding from fee-based programs, and the issuance of passports and visas will not be affected.
10. Federal Reserve
Because it is self-funded, it remains unaffected and maintains full operations.
11. Securities and Exchange Commission
As the previous fiscal year's budget has not been exhausted, it is temporarily unaffected.
12. Department of Justice
Of the 114,486 employees, approximately 17,742 are on leave, with 96,744 remaining on duty, mostly involved in national security, criminal investigations, and enforcement matters.
