The U.S. Capitol building on Feb. 11, 2024, in Washington, D.C. Credit: Samuel Corum/Getty Images via TNS

The prospect of a U.S. government shutdown means not only a halt to nonessential government programs, and a furlough for thousands of federal employees, it could also impact federally funded research at Ohio State.  

The government will shut down Oct. 1 at midnight if Congress cannot reach a compromise to continue federal funding before a lapse occurs, according to the Associated Press. This would require government agencies to stop activity until a spending plan is approved.. 

Currently, Democrats in Congress are trying to reverse Medicaid cuts in President Donald J. Trump’s mega-bill that passed this summer, as well as extend tax credits to make health insurance premiums more affordable, according to the AP. Republicans believe that this proposal is a nonstarter, and neither side shows any signs of budging. 

Chris Booker, a university spokesperson, said Ohio State is keeping watch on Capitol Hill.

“We are closely monitoring the situation in Washington and will provide updates to the community when possible,” Chris Booker, a university spokesperson, said in an email.

Booker also said that if this shutdown is short, the university should expect minimal disruption in its research operations.

Here’s what Ohio State students, staff and faculty should know if the government shutdown goes into effect. 

Research funding

If the government shuts down, most of Ohio State’s federally funded research will continue as planned, according to the university’s Enterprise for Research, Innovation and Knowledge website. 

Projects that are funded on grants will continue, but projects that are federally-funded through a contract may be issued a stop-work order, according to the website. 

If the project receives a stop-work order, federally-contracted employees “can no longer be paid with federal funds allocated to that contract,” according to a guide prepared by the Council of Government Relations (COGR). 

The council is a “national authority on federal policies and regulations affecting U.S. research institutions,” according to its website.

Following the guidelines of previous government shutdowns, administrative processes that relate to federal funding would be put on hold, and federal agency program officers or other grant management staff would be unavailable to answer any questions or give feedback, according to the university’s website. 

There would also be no new funding opportunities—panel reviews would be postponed and no new grants could be awarded. 

Pell Grants, federal student loans and loan repayment systems are expected to remain operational, according to the U.S. Department of Education. 

Guidelines for the university

The Council of Government Relations prepared a guide released Sept. 24 for research institutions to consider in the case of a government shutdown. The council noted that this is not official guidance, but rather an accumulation of previous instruction.

The council said that university officials should coordinate a plan to communicate with students and campus leaders about the impacts of the shutdown and to develop tools to monitor the “burn rate of expenses on federal awards.”

For research proposals, it is expected that the preparation system will still be online during a government closure, but that the proposals would not be processed by agencies until operations resume, according to the guide. It is predicted that peer reviews or study sections will not occur, which could impact faculty who are reviewers as well as proposals that are waiting to be reviewed. 

In terms of drawing cash and payments for awards, in past shutdowns, these were permitted to continue as long as the loan repayment systems did not require federal intervention. 

“Process changes made to comply with executive orders requiring agency review and approval of award-level details within each payment request will likely stall payments until federal personnel return to work,” the guide states. 

The council also advised processing requests for payments now. 

Faculty that work in federal labs or facilities could receive notification that they are not permitted to work on associated awards during the shutdown, according to the guide. 

For federal contracts, the stop-work order may be implemented. 

Depending on the length of the shutdown, the university may need to float funds around if activities continue but sponsors are not processing the funding actions, according to the guide. 

Federal personnel will also be unavailable throughout this time for scheduled campus visits or project status meetings, the guide states. 

As Congress continues working on a plan for federal funding, more information related to the government shutdown and the university can be found at Ohio State News.