Across the state, officials are scrambling to offset what could be the worst impacts of the federal government shutdown. So far, tens of thousands of federal employees have gone a month without a whole paycheck, and now SNAP benefits are on hold — meaning hundreds of thousands of Nevadans are starting to wonder where their next meal is coming from.
Amid the uncertainty, are Congressional leaders any closer to a compromise that will potentially reopen the government? Not really, according to Nevada's 1st District Representative, Dina Titus, a Democrat and the longest-serving member of the state’s congressional delegation. Titus has spent most of her time in Nevada since the shutdown started. She told State of Nevada that the shutdown is having an impact on communities across the state.
"They're laying off people in special ed at the Department of Education. That certainly impacts Nevada," she said. "I was just at an event this morning for the disabled. Today is Disability Awareness Day. They are going to be hurt by that. You've got some of the IRS folks laid off, so it makes it harder to get through on the telephone if you have a problem. Some people at the VA have been laid off again, making it harder and longer to get services. So, it impacts across the board, and that doesn't even refer to the direct transfer payments that people aren't going to get, like WIC and SNAP and Medicaid."
How the showdown ends remains anyone's guess. Titus said, now that SNAP benefits are on hold, policymakers may make more of an effort to restart negotiations.
"I think there'll be some public pressure to look at what we can do to get those benefits back," she added. "Maybe that means opening the government, I don't know, but it's going to hit. It's like a perfect storm. All these things are going to hit at the same time, and it's going to really impact Nevada, because we have a lot of people depend on those services."
KNPR also asked 2nd District Congressman Mark Amodei to join us. He’s Nevada’s sole Republican in Congress. He declined our invitation. However, his office did provide a statement.
“There are consequences to shutting the government down... and the real pain is setting in.Nearly six weeks ago, my Republican colleagues and I in both the House and Senate voted to fully fund the programs Americans rely on and ensure every federal employee and member of the military gets paid. This shutdown was completely avoidable. Yet, instead of joining us to keep the government open, Senate Democrats have now voted 13 times to do the opposite... So, when I hear people suddenly saying, after this amount of time, ‘Oh my god, the shutdown has consequences,’ I have to ask — where has the sense of urgency manifested itself to keep the government funded so far?”
Guests: Rep. Dina Titus, democrat, Nevada's 1st Congressional District
