Time is running out for congressional Democrats and Republicans to agree to how they will fund the 2024 federal budget. All signs are pointing to a federal shutdown on Oct. 1, the first day of the new fiscal year.
What do both national and local reporters need to know about what happens next? How should they cover this story and what it means for Americans? What impact will it have on Americans’ day-to-day lives? How is this congressional disagreement different from the debt limit debate which was resolved earlier this year?
The National Press Club Journalism Institute presented a webinar with Shai Akabas, executive director, Economic Policy Program at the Bipartisan Policy Center, to learn answers to these questions.
Additional resources
- A government shutdown is nearing this weekend. What is next? (Associated Press)
- What happens if the government shuts down? (American Federation of Government Employees)
- What is a government shutdown and why is it likely to happen? (Brookings Institute)
- Government shutdowns Q & A – everything you should know (Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget)
- What happens if the government shuts down in 2023? (Bipartisan Policy Center)
- White House’s government agency contingency plans
- How many federal government employees are there?
- Contractors and the size of government
- Bipartisan Policy Center’s next shutdown briefing will be held at 8:30 a.m. Tuesday, Oct. 3. The meeting passcode is 1225. Its staff can provide expert commentary on a variety of topics, including economics, higher education, housing, infrastructure, and more. Reach out to Hanadi Jordan to arrange an interview.
About the speaker
Shai Akabas is the executive director of the Economic Policy Program at the Bipartisan Policy Center. He has conducted research on a variety of economic policy issues, including the federal budget, retirement security, and the financing of higher education. Akabas joined the BPC in 2010 and staffed the Domenici-Rivlin Debt Reduction Task Force that year. He also assisted Jerome H. Powell, now Chairman of the Federal Reserve, in his work on the federal debt limit. For the past several years, Akabas has steered BPC’s Commission on Retirement Security and Personal Savings, co-chaired by former Sen. Kent Conrad and the Honorable James B. Lockhart III.
About the National Press Club Journalism Institute
The National Press Club Journalism Institute promotes an engaged global citizenry through an independent and free press, and equips journalists with skills and standards to inform the public in ways that inspire a more representative democracy. As the non-profit affiliate of the National Press Club, the Institute powers journalism in the public interest.
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