Federal courts are expected to run out of money on Feb. 1 after stretching fees and other “no-year” funds during the partial government shutdown, the administrative agency for the judiciary said today.
When the money runs out, each court will have to determine how many staffers must stay on without pay to support “mission critical work.”
“No further extensions beyond Feb. 1 will be possible,” the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts said today. “Most of the measures are temporary stopgaps, and the Judiciary will face many deferred payment obligations after the partial government shutdown ends.“
Some of those measures include delaying or deferring new hires, travel and certain contracts.
Should the court system largely shut down, civil lawsuits will bear the brunt of the impact.
The Justice Department has also asked courts to temporarily put on hold some cases in which the federal government is a party until the shutdown ends.
For example, DOJ recently asked for a delay in the legal fight over the fate of Obamacare.
And a legal battle has stalled over Education Secretary Betsy DeVos’ proposed overhaul of rules for how schools handle allegations of sexual harassment and assault.
The judiciary is funded through an annual appropriations bill, S. 3072, that is caught up in the dispute over President Trump’s border wall.
FBI agents have called for an end to the ongoing partial government shutdown, warning that the current lapse in funds is unsustainable and could ultimately compromise national security.
The FBI Agents Association, which represents nearly all active duty FBI agents, urged lawmakers in a letter to pass appropriations for the Department of Justice as soon as possible, noting that FBI agents, like over half a million other federal employees, are set to miss their first paychecks tomorrow because of the shutdown.
America’s longest partial government closure is now in its 32nd day, with no clear end in sight.
Senate Republicans and Democrats offered the first glimmers of a potential resolution to the shutdown today, scheduling procedural votes for Thursday on President Trump’s proposal to spend $5.7 billion on a border wall and a competing bill that would fund the government through Feb. 8.