Shutdowns Cost Billions as US Federal Workers Paid to Stay Home
- Fees go uncollected, billions spent to pay furloughed workers
- Government shutdowns ‘leave the government to waste money’
The entrance to the House of Representatives on the East Front Plaza of the U.S. Capitol in Washington, DC.
Photographer: Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images
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The costly truth about US government shutdowns: They don’t save taxpayers a dime.
Government services may grind to a halt as federal workers get sent home. But, thanks to uncollected entrance fees at national parks, lack of sales from government gift shops and back pay provided to government employees, shutdowns can end up costing billions of dollars.