News and Public Media for North Central Florida
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

Florida Residents Suffer From Federal Government Shutdown

Indecision in Washington led to furloughs for more than 800,000 government workers, including many who call North Central Florida home.

After Congress failed to reach a consensus on the national budget, the government officially shut down at midnight Tuesday, defunding all non-essential services deemed by the government.

Non-essential services include parks and museums as well as certain financial agencies.

Locally, Ocala National Forest was one of 401 properties of the National Park Service shut down. Visitors will not be allowed to enter the park, and campers or on-site hotel guests will have 48 hours to leave, according to CNN.

Security officers at the Gainesville IRS office at 104 N. Main Street were turning away residents at the door. The office’s employees are without pay, a guard told WUFT News Tuesday morning.

The office’s answering machine reported all IRS offices as closed during the current budget situation.

“All past payments and filing deadlines remain in effect during this period,” according to the answering machine. This includes the looming Oct. 15 deadline for a Form 1040 extension filing.

Services labeled as essential include the military, the Postal Service, most law enforcement, emergency medical care, federal prisons, air traffic control and Social Security programs.

Sen. Bill Nelson (D-Florida) said he was "outraged" about the House of Representatives' tactics Tuesday.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hnZambnwfoQ

Colleen is a reporter for WUFT News and can be contacted by calling 352-392-6397 or emailing news@wuft.org.
Leah is a reporter who can be contacted by calling 352-392-6397 or emailing news@wuft.org.