Overview

• The guidance limits work to excepted activities that protect life or property, support presidential duties, or are otherwise authorized, offering more than 50 illustrative examples.
• Roughly 223,889 Defense Department civilians must report for duty while more than 334,000 could be furloughed out of about 741,477 civilian employees.
• Active-duty personnel are required to work during a lapse without pay until Congress acts, and back pay for troops and furloughed civilians is not guaranteed.
• Contractors may continue previously funded work, but the department cannot execute new contracts that require fresh obligations of appropriated funds.
• Six areas receive top priority during a lapse: U.S. southern border operations, Middle East operations, Golden Dome for America, depot maintenance, shipbuilding, and critical munitions, with expected impacts including restricted TDY and PCS moves and potential delays to new programs and deliveries.