Image source, Getty Images

This US federal shutdown was triggered because Congress failed to pass a last-minute funding bill, called a continuing resolution (CR).

A continuing resolution is needed when Congress is unable to complete their spending bills - which provide funding for around 25% of all government operations - on time.

It is a temporary “stop gap” which allows Congress to fund the federal government for a short time. They cover a period during which Congress and the US president reach an agreement on how to allocate federal funds.

The vote for a continuing resolution took place in the Senate, but only managed to reach 53 of the 60 votes needed to pass it.

This shutdown now won't be resolved until Congress passes a funding bill.

Image source, Getty Images

Some government services across the US are grinding to a halt after a deadline for Democrats and Republicans to agree to a new federal funding package expired. Here's what you need to know:

• Democrats in the Senate refused to back an eleventh-hour bill for a short extension, arguing it did not address their concerns about cuts to healthcare programmes
• Meanwhile, US President Donald Trump has threatened to use the shut-down to carry out mass lay-offs
• Both the Republicans and Democrats are laying the blame for the impasse at each other's feet
• The Senate is due to convene later today, at 10:00 local time (15:00 BST / 14:00 GMT)

And remind me, what's the source of the shutdown?

The Republicans were pushing to pass a bill to extend government funding without other initiatives attached - known as a clean continuing resolution.

But they only have 53 seats in the Senate - and need 60 votes to pass such a bill, meaning they need support from the Democrats.

The Democrats sought to capitalise on that leverage to try and advance their policy goals in healthcare, which included:

• Ensuring subsidies for health insurance for low-income individuals do not expire
• Reversing the Trump administration's cuts to Medicaid

But that was a no-go for Republicans and they came to a standoff. The shutdown won't be resolved until Congress passes a funding bill.

Image source, Getty Images

The US Postal Service has previously been unaffected by government shutdowns, and it says this time it will be no different.

In a statement posted on its website earlier this week, the US Postal Service says all post offices will remain open for business as usual.

This is because it's an independent entity that is generally funded through the sale of its products and services, and not by tax dollars.

We don't know exactly how long this government shutdown will last as it will only be resolved once Congress passes a funding bill.

As we've been reporting, this is not the first time such a shutdown has happened.

The longest in American history lasted 35 days and took place during Trump's first term in office.

In the past, shutdowns have ranged in length:

• The second longest shutdown was in December 1995 - it lasted 21 days
• During Barack Obama's presidency, a shutdown lasted 16 days

• Between 1982 and 1987, four government shutdowns lasted just one day each
• Under former President Bill Clinton, a federal shutdown lasted 5 days

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Image source, Reuters

Two senior Democrats have released a joint statement calling for a bipartisan effort to end the government shutdown.

"Democrats remain ready to find a bipartisan path forward to reopen the government," says the statement, signed by Chuck Schumer, the US Senate's top Democrat, and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries.

Continuing the finger-pointing we've seen so far, the statement places the blame for the shutdown on the Republicans.

"Donald Trump and the Republicans have now shut down the federal government because they do not want to protect the healthcare of the American people," it continues.

The Republicans, however, blame the Democrats for the impasse, with House Speaker Mike Johnson calling the party's demand to extend Obamacare tax credits a "red herring".

• For more details on how we got here, read our explainer post from earlier today

Image source, Getty Images

Will flights take off?

• Air traffic control and Transportation Safety Administration (TSA) workers are considered "essential" - so will continue to work
• But during the last shutdown, these workers increasingly began to call in sick, leading to delays in security checks at major airports
• Flight systems might also "need to slow down, reducing efficiency" - according to airline representative Airlines for America

Will government employees be paid?

• Around 750,000 federal workers will be taking unpaid leave each day, according to an estimate from the Congressional Budget Office (CBO)
• The total daily cost of their compensation will be roughly $400m (£297m), the CBO says
• Members of Congress, as we just reported, will continue getting paid as its required by the US Constitution

Will mail be delivered?

• The US Postal Service would be unaffected because it does not depend on Congress for funding
• Post offices will stay open

What about law enforcement services?

• Law enforcement officers will continue to work through the government shutdown - though over 200,000 of them will do so unpaid
• Also continuing their work as usual are those in border protection, in-hospital medical care, and air-traffic control

Why government shutdowns seem to be a uniquely American problempublished at 09:28 BST 1 October

09:28 BST 1 October

Robert Levinson King and Anthony Zurcher
BBC News

Image source, Getty Images

The US government has now shut down eleven times over the past 40-plus years.

Meanwhile, in other countries, governments keep functioning, even in the midst of wars and constitutional crises.

So why does this uniquely American phenomenon keep happening?

America's federal system of government allows different branches of government to be controlled by different parties - a structure devised by the nation's founders to encourage deliberation.

That was until 1980. A narrow interpretation of the 1884 Anti-Deficiency Act, during Jimmy Carter's presidency, banned the government from entering into contracts without congressional approval. This took took a much stricter view: no budget, no spending.

That interpretation has set the US apart from other non-parliamentary democracies.

Now in the US, warring political parties seem all-too willing to use the day-to-day functioning of the government as a bargaining chip to extract demands from the other side.

• Read more on how US government shutdowns have become a perennial phenomenon

Image source, Getty Images

As we just mentioned, there are thousands of essential workers who will still have to show up for work during the government shutdown.

While that is happening, federal workers will not receive new payslips.

So, depending on when their payday falls and how long the shutdown lasts for, many workers may not get paid on time.

Furloughed and essential employees will instead receive backpay when the government opens up again.

There is an exception to this: members of Congress, whose pay is protected under the US Constitution.

It's a convention that's been opposed by some lawmakers.

Andy Kim, a Democratic senator for New Jersey, said in a statement yesterday that he would forgo pay in the event of a shutdown, saying "government leaders shouldn't be playing with other people's chips".

Ahead of the government shutdown, federal agencies began sharing their plans on their respective websites.

Some departments, like the Department Homeland Security, are retaining the majority of their staff - this means they are required to come to work as normal.

Many others, however, are furloughing their staff - this means they are not required to show up to work.

According to our partner, CBS News, the five government departments furloughing the most staff are:

• Department of Defense (civilian staff): 334,904 furloughed, with 406,573 retained
• Department of Health: 32,460 furloughed, with 47,257 retained
• Department of Commerce: 34,711 furloughed, with 8,273 retained
• Department of State: 16,651 furloughed, with 10,344 retained
• Nasa: 15,094 furloughed, with 3,124 retained

Image source, EPA

Federal services will be affected in different ways by the shutdown. So if you're planning to visit the US soon, you should plan ahead as it's very possible you'll encounter some disruptions.

Your flight plans may be affected

Air traffic control and Transportation Safety Administration (TSA) workers are considered "essential" - so will continue to work. However, as with other essential workers, they won't be paid until the shutdown resolves.

During the last shutdown, these workers increasingly began to call in sick, leading to airport delays.

The US Department of Transportation's shutdown plans outline that hiring and training of air traffic controllers will continue.

Public transport within the US should continue as normal

The Rail Passengers Association said last week that Amtrak, and transit systems, should not be affected in the short term.

Most other forms of public transit in the US - like city buses, subways, light rails, trams, and ferries - are not federally funded and so will run as normal.

Attractions and landmarks will be affected differently

An Interior Department contingency plan has outlined that national parks will remain partially open.

In Washington DC and New York, the Smithsonian Institution which owns many museums as well as the National Zoo has said it has enough funds to remain open for a week.

According to the American Alliance of Museums - the Smithsonian's museums lost an estimated one million visitors during the last government shutdown in late 2018.

Image source, Reuters

Ahead of the government shutdown, President Trump suggested that "vast numbers of people" could be laid off - something that he said would be "irreversible".

Threats like that, says Eric Ham, a political analyst and former congressional staffer, could initially be viewed as a "tool" to try to get the Democrats to back down from their ongoing demands.

But now the government has shut down, more layoffs are "certainly something that could be on the table", he tells BBC News Channel.

• For context: The US president is the head of the executive branch of government, and was not involved in the Senate vote leading to the shutdown.

Trump, Ham says, could see this as an opportunity, as the US president has previously "made it clear" he wants to streamline the government.

Since taking office, Trump has fired thousands of federal workers through his cost-cutting initiative with the Department of Government Efficiency (Doge).

And then in a memo circulated by the White House last Thursday, it also warned agencies to prepare for mass firings in the event of a shutdown.

Emer Moreau
BBC News

Wayne Winegarden has been speaking to BBC Radio 4’s Today programme, and he says the first place you're going to see an impact is on workers.

“If you work for the federal government, you’re not going to go to work, you're not going to get paid,” the senior fellow in business and economics at the Pacific Research Institute says.

“If you’re a contractor, again, you’re not going to get your payments.”

The longer the shutdown goes on, the more people will feel it - when the cash for social security payments runs out, families receiving those payments will take a hit.

If it goes on longer again, services like the US national parks could see their funding streams dry up.

Winegarden also notes that it's difficult to know if President Trump will use this shutdown as an excuse to accelerate his plans to make large cuts to the number of federal workers.

"We’ve seen that in past cuts where they’ve fired people and then realised ‘whoops, we need those people', and then hire them back."

Image source, Getty Images

A memo released by the White House yesterday warned agencies that would be affected by the shutdown to "execute their plans for an orderly shutdown".

It explained that the duration of a shutdown is difficult to predict. Many agencies will be affected by the situation - but some services will continue.

Previous shutdowns have resulted in federal lands, including National Parks and National Forests, being closed to the public. This time around, however, national parks will remain partially open, according to an Interior Department contingency plan posted Tuesday evening., external

The Coalition to Protect America's National Parks penned a letter last week pushing for parks to close in the event of a shutdown for fear of damage to the landscapes and visitor safety.

Medicare and Medicaid, social health programmes for the elderly and poor, will continue, but staffing shortages could lead to some interruptions to services.

The National Flood Insurance Program will be closed, which will affect property sales.

Food assistance programmes will also be impacted, with the Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) expected to rapidly run out of funds.

Border protection, in-hospital medical care, law enforcement and air-traffic control should all continue.

A federal shutdown is likely to impact flyers, as there could potentially be long security queues, and delays caused by unpaid air traffic controllers choosing to stay home rather than work for free.

We've got more on this in our explainer.

Image source, Reuters

Law enforcement officers will continue to work through the government shutdown, says Kristi Noem, who heads up the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).

"More than 200,000 of these patriots will go without pay," she writes on X.

Noem goes on to blame the Democrats for the shutdown, saying it's "forcing over 150,000 officers and nearly 50,000 members of the military - our frontline of defense - to continue protecting our nation without pay".

Her statement follows reporting by CBS News, the BBC's US partner, which found the DHS expected about 258,000 Homeland Security workers would be exempt from furlough in the event of a government shutdown.

Image source, Reuters

As we've been reporting, the US government shut down almost two hours ago.

The Republican-controlled Senate failed to pass a last-minute government spending bill yesterday, which could have averted the shutdown.

The Republicans were pushing to pass a bill to extend government funding without other initiatives attached - known as a clean CR - or continuing resolution.

But they only have 53 seats in the Senate - and need 60 votes to pass such a bill.

This meant they needed the Democrats support to pass the bill - and the Democrats knew that.

The Democrats sought to capitalise on that leverage to try and advance their policy goals in health care, which included:

• Ensuring subsidies for health insurance for low-income individuals do not expire
• Reversing the Trump administration's cuts to Medicaid

So they came to a standoff - with each party subsequently blaming the other for the shutdown - and one which won't be resolved until Congress passes a funding bill.

Image source, White House

A bit earlier, we brought you the details about how the White House had launched a shutdown countdown clock on its website.

That clock has now been swapped out for a timer that is now tracking how long the government remains shutdown.

The website now reads "Democrats have shutdown the government".

For context: Both Democrats and Republicans are laying blame on each other when it comes to the shutdown. While Republicans control both chambers of Congress, they fall short of the 60 votes needed in the Senate to pass a spending bill.

As the US federal government shutdown started an hour ago, members of both parties are laying the blame on one another.

From the Democrats:

• Congressman Bill Foster issues a statement saying Republicans bear responsibility for the shutdown, given they control the House, the Senate and the White House. Families across the country will "continue to pay the price" unless the Republicans come to the table, he adds.
• Representative Joe Morelle says he's "deeply frustrated", and the shutdown was a direct result of "a brutal and incompetent administration"
• California Governor Gavin Newsom shares on X a photo of Trump in his office, calling the president a "very weak man who can't even do stairs"

Image source, Reuters

And on the Republicans' side:

• The Republican Conference in the US House of Representatives shares on X a video of lights in the Capitol Building turning out, saying the Democrats are "putting illegal aliens first and hurting hardworking Americans in the process"

• Representative Dusty Johnson says "shutdowns are stupid", adding that Democrats are "putting American workers' paychecks at risk"
• Fellow Representative Chuck Fleischmann says that Democrats have "officially shut down our government", and "hardworking taxpayers will have to pay the bill"

Image source, CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images

This is in line with the trend we saw in the lead up to the midnight deadline.

Peter Hoskins
Business reporter, Singapore

As I reported earlier in the morning, global financial markets seem to be broadly taking the shutdown in their stride.

Investors appear to be mostly looking past the widely expected stoppage, as they see it as a temporary blip.

Here in the Asia-Pacific region, stock markets are mixed as investors focus on issues closer to home rather than the politics of Washington DC.

Japan's Nikkei 225 is about 1% lower after a business sentiment report disappointed, while the Nifty 50 in India is higher as the country's central bank kept interest rates on hold.

Back in the US, the main stock indexes closed higher on Tuesday, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average hitting a record high.

But there are some signs that that jitters may be creeping into Wall Street.

US stock futures are pointing to a lower open on Wednesday. Futures are contracts to buy or sell an underlying asset at a future date and are an indication of how markets will trade when they open.

Gold - which is seen as a safe haven for investments during times of uncertainty - has hit a new record high of more than $3,872 an ounce.

At the same time, the US dollar is hovering near a one-week low against other major currencies.

A letter issued by the director of the Congressional Budget Office prior to the shutdown has given more details over the potential financial implications.

In the letter from Phillip Swagel, the office estimates 750,000 federal employees could be furloughed each day, with a total daily cost of around $400m (£297m).

It adds that this projected number of furloughed employees could vary daily, as some agencies might furlough more employees the longer the shutdown persists, while others might recall some initially furloughed employees.

Members of Congress will still be paid as their pay is required by the American constitution, the letter adds.

As for the military, they are required to work during a shutdown but won't be paid until after.

"The effects of a government shutdown on business activity are uncertain, and their magnitude would depend on the duration of a shutdown and on decisions made by the Administration," the letter adds.