Lawmakers had until September 30th to reconcile three federal budget proposals and pass a comprehensive budget for federal fiscal year (FFY) 2026. President Donald Trump’s budget request, the Senate Appropriations Committee’s bill, and the House Appropriations Committee’s bill were the three main proposals involved in the budget negotiation process. Because Congress was unable to pass a full-year budget or a continuing resolution (CR) — a short-term, stopgap measure that largely maintains current funding levels — a government shutdown began on Wednesday, October 1st.
As a result of the shutdown, non-essential operations of federal agencies have been suspended, and non-essential employees have been furloughed. The federal government will remain shut down until either a CR or a full-year budget is passed by Congress.
A government shutdown impacts everyone in some form or another — whether its federal workers not receiving paychecks, families losing access to important programs, or students seeing critical resources delayed and services cut.
This briefing breaks down these impacts and provides a high-level overview of how the federal government shutdown affects students and schools in Connecticut, and what it means for federal K-12 education funding.
Citation
School and State Finance Project. (2025). 2025 Federal Government Shutdown: Impacts to K-12 Education Funding & Connecticut. Southington, CT: Author. Retrieved from https://files.schoolstatefinance.org/hubfs/Reports/2025%20Federal%20Government%20Shutdown%20Briefing.pdf.