Money drips out of an important folder and off of a table into a dark empty space. The federal government has been losing its capabilities to fund important government research and institutions. “There is no extra money to do anything with at public institutions,” said Katherine Jackson, a Clinical Director at University of California, San Francisco Benioff Hospital.
U.S. federal courts are running out of funding to continue important cases, such as California lawsuits, and are now being restricted to only limited operations, stalling the legal battles between the state and the federal government.
The three-week-long government shutdown beginning on Oct. 1 has been impacting the ongoing California lawsuits against the federal government, such as those about gender-affirming care and health research funding, by draining the funding going into the federal courts, according to the U.S. Courts. This has resulted in a budget lapse, restricting the courts to only do activities permitted under the Anti-Deficiency Act. This includes cases and such that are necessary for the safety of human life and the protection of property, and is in effect until the end of the shutdown.
“You don’t know what’s gonna happen until it’s actually happened. But the longer the shutdown goes, the more easily things could change,” said Matthew Miller, a biochemistry researcher and Carlmont High School parent.
It’s rare for government shutdowns to occur for more than a day or a few days, so a government shutdown for three weeks is particularly unusual and can cause worry in the public. The longest ever government shutdown was the one before this one, which lasted from December 2018 to January 2019 for a total of 35 days, according to Congress.gov.
“I know there are a lot of programs at Carlmont, and I know that some of them come from the Carlmont Education Fund, but I also know that a lot of it must have come from federal funds. So far as I know, we haven’t had many huge impacts from the changes that were earlier this year, but you never know what will happen,” Miller said.
While Carlmont is temporarily at ease, the ambiguity of the coming changes can put a lot of worry into the lives of parents and students throughout the community.
“I think a lot of people are in the dark like that. When there’s a government shutdown, it’s not like there’s an orderly process. Very often, government shutdowns, when they happen, are very short and usually averted at the last minute, and then they usually don’t go on very long. We could enter some unknown territory soon,” Miller said.
Furthermore, the longer that the government is without funding, the more federal layoffs will continue, and many organizations, such as the courts, will not be able to function as normal, which will set back many research institutions and cases that were interrupted by the shutdown.
Additionally, the federal government, even before the shutdown, has been reducing funding for important health research at government-affiliated public hospitals and closing reproductive health clinics, according to Best Lawyers. As the courts are being limited, there is not much that can be done legally by the state of California until the shutdown is over.
“A lot of funding is being pulled for critical research, particularly from the National Institutes of Health, which has led to many grants being terminated. Critical cancer research isn’t happening,” said Katherine Jackson, a clinical director at University of California, San Francisco Benioff Hospital.
One of the prime lawsuits by California against the federal government was against the reduction of funding for such critical research, as well as the shutting down of many Planned Parenthood clinics in the Bay Area. Five clinics in South San Francisco, San Mateo, Gilroy, Santa Cruz, and Madera have been shut down due to a lack of funding, and, previous to the federal court limitations, California was organizing a lawsuit to attempt to reimburse funding to these clinics.
Jackson also believes funding cuts like these may impact the Department of Education and more closely impact our community. For the future, the Bay Area community is unsure about what is to come. According to Miller, it’s likely that funding for neurodivergent and/or disabled students will decline in the coming weeks if the shutdown continues and California cannot do anything about it legally.
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I think we’ve been very lucky in the Bay Area so far. We’re quite cushioned because we have a strong state governor, because we have a very strong local government in a very liberal kind of legacy.
— Elizabeth Coffey
“I think we’ve been very lucky in the Bay Area so far. We’re quite cushioned because we have a strong state governor, because we have a very strong local government in a very liberal kind of legacy,” said Elizabeth Coffey, a passionate Democrat and Carlmont parent.
The primarily democratic demographic of California is a reason why the lawsuits are taking place, as while the state also cares about giving people the funding that they need, the fight between California and the Trump Administration is clear.
“Local media could help by summarizing these issues in simpler terms and showing how they directly affect people here instead of just covering the political side,” said Aryaman Jindal, a student at San Mateo High School.
Jindal also believes that federal funding may become more of an issue.
“I am somewhat concerned. If federal funding keeps getting delayed or reduced, California might have to rely more on state resources, which could strain budgets and delay important programs,” Jindal said.