You can end a shutdown overnight — but you can’t reopen a government that fast

NEW YORK AP The longest regime shutdown in U S history is over on paper at least But the American populace isn t done with it yet Getting everything back up and running doesn t happen all at once The disruption of the closure clocking in at days varied in its impact Several people like unpaid federal workers were right away and directly affected Others included recipients of federal funding through programs like Head Start and food aid through the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Undertaking As the shutdown progressed effects rippled Delays and flight cancellations started racking up for passengers as the Federal Aviation Administration ordered airlines to cut back on flights because of air traffic controller shortages There were closures at Smithsonian museum sites and the National Zoo although the animals still got fed That s a lot of programs agencies and systems Reclaiming normal won t be instantaneous Here s a guide to what reopening looks like Federal workers WHAT HAPPENED About million federal workers haven t been paid since Oct missing about billion in wages according to official estimates The workers were either furloughed or worked without pay in agencies across the federal authorities A multitude of struggled to make ends meet during that time and the regional commercial sector around Washington D C took a hit WHAT NOW The Office of Personnel Management which manages the civil operation posted on X that federal workers were expected to be back Thursday saying that employees are expected to begin the workday on time Normal operating procedures are in effect The pay owed to the workers will come in by Nov The money will go out in four separate tranches depending on the agency according to a senior administration official Help with heat WHAT HAPPENED The shutdown coincided with the arrival of colder temperatures and funding for the billion Low-Income Home Strength Assistance Scheme was halted prompting selected states to delay payments for heating bills WHAT NOW A U S Department of Wellness and Human Services spokesperson explained Thursday that an agency within HHS will work swiftly to administer annual awards but no timeline was given Mark Wolfe executive director of the National Power Assistance Directors Association mentioned it could take until mid-December or longer Wolfe declared recipients should still submit applications and tell utility companies they re waiting for the funds It s trickier for people who rely on oil and propane because typically there are no protections Recipients should check with their state Vermont backfilled funding and Connecticut has pledged to cover the cost Flight disruptions WHAT HAPPENED The shutdown caused critical disruptions in aviation with more and more unpaid air traffic controllers missing work as they dealt with the financial pressures and specific of them picked up side jobs Those staff shortages combined with a few troubling safety details prompted the authorities to order airlines to cut chosen of their flights over the past week to relieve pressure on the system WHAT NOW Those cuts aren t increasing right now but the Federal Aviation Administration won t lift the order until safety metrics improve Airlines say they expect to resume normal operations swiftly after that Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy has stated that controllers and other FAA employees should receive of their back pay within - hours of the end of the shutdown with the rest to come Federal social programs SNAP WHAT HAPPENED Among the the greater part high-profile impacts of the shutdown was on the SNAP venture which serves around million people about in Americans in lower-income households A series of court rulings and shifting policies from the Trump administration led to a patchwork distribution of November benefits While selected states had already issued full benefits about two-thirds of states had issued only partial benefits or none at all WHAT NOW On Thursday state representatives commented they were working fast to get full benefits to the millions of people who missed their regular monthly payments Several states declared SNAP recipients should receive their full monthly benefits starting Thursday or Friday though it could take up to a week Federal social programs Head Start WHAT HAPPENED When it comes to Head Start the shutdown had held up the distribution of federal grant payments Certain affected centers remained open by furloughing portions of their staff or tapping into emergency reserves Others were forced to close shutting down child care for thousands of families Head Start serves children from birth to age who come from families that qualify for federal low-income guidelines are homeless or receive community assistance The activity provides preschool training as well as developmental screenings and free meals WHAT NOW The Office of Head Start will expedite funding and directly contact the impacted programs to share a timeline of when they can expect federal money noted Emily Hilliard a spokesperson for the U S Department of Wellbeing and Human Services The office is already operating at a reduced limit after experiencing substantial layoffs earlier this year But even when programs receive their money plan leaders worry of staffing shortages if too numerous furloughed employees already revealed other jobs Particular advocates declared it could take several weeks for several of the programs across the country to receive funding and restore operations Taxes WHAT HAPPENED The Internal Revenue System had closed walk-in assistance centers WHAT NOW The centers are being reopened The agency declared all tax deadlines remain in effect but a backlog of paper correspondence developed during the shutdown so responses will be delayed Social Prevention recipients continued receiving payments throughout the shutdown Local offices also remained open though they had temporarily suspended a limited services including replacing Medicare cards and updating earnings records Teaching WHAT HAPPENED The Learning Department laid off Development Department staffers in the cross-government firings meant to pressure Democratic lawmakers over the shutdown Those layoffs had been halted by a federal judge The department furloughed employees at the start of the shutdown but particular were brought back for essential work New grants were also put on hold during the shutdown Largest part school districts received the bulk of their federal funding over the summer but several grants have been delayed WHAT NOW The department declared Thursday it had brought back all furloughed staff members or those dismissed in the Trump administration s mass firings Recipients of Impact Aid which boosts the budgets of districts with large amounts of federal land that can t be taxed for local schools were waiting to learn when their payments would be processed The military WHAT HAPPENED Members of the U S military dealt with weeks of anxiety over whether they would get paid as they continued working The Trump administration ultimately ascertained methods to pay troops for the two pay periods during the closure But the process was fraught the administration located the money just days before each paycheck Pay arrived days later than usual for plenty of utility members with early direct deposit disrupting their ability to pay bills and forcing specific to pay late fees or rack up debt Reimbursements for the cost of moving between bases which affects roughly military families each year were paused during the shutdown advocates reported And weekend drills for multiple reservists were canceled eliminating a chunk of pay that can be several hundred dollars each month WHAT NOW Civilians in the Defense Department began returning Thursday According to a memo provided to The Associated Press the Air Force disclosed civilians could take a day of administrative leave or work remotely for up to a week Several military functionaries mentioned the impacts on active-duty troops have been minimal National parks WHAT HAPPENED The country s national parks largely stayed open through the shutdown with limited staffing Outside groups and state governments had picked up the tab during the shutdown to keep visitor centers running and help with trash cleanup at countless parks And the Trump administration tapped into previously collected entrance fees to pay for cleaning restrooms and other basic services But the efforts didn t stop vandals from defacing rock features along Devils Garden Trail in Arches National Park in Utah and toppling a stone wall at Devil s Den in Gettysburg National Military Park in Pennsylvania WHAT NOW National Park Institution employees were ordered back to work Thursday It will take time for rangers to fully assess parks including backcountry areas and more damage could yet be discovered revealed Kristen Brengel with the National Parks Conservation Association No fees were collected during the shutdown costing parks almost million a day in lost revenue Museums WHAT HAPPENED The Smithsonian buildings and the National Zoo were first closed Oct They are typically open every day except Christmas The sites together hosted more than million people last year and the organization has more than federal employees While the zoo has been closed the popular livestream feeds capturing the famous giant pandas were offline The normally functioning social media pages sharing animal updates and colorful photographs were silent The animals continue to be fed and get care WHAT NOW Two of the Smithsonian s museums along the National Mall American History and Air and Space were to reopen Friday The organization says on its website that the rest of the Smithsonian s sites across the Washington area and New York will reopen by Monday on a rolling basis