On October 1, 2025, a federal government shutdown began in response to the failure of Congress to pass a spending bill for the new year. What does this mean for families?
For children with disabilities in California, most of their services and benefits are California state programs, and the California state government remains open and funded.
In the federal government, mandatory services such as Medicaid, Medicare, and Social Security are considered essential and will continue. These form the basis of federal funding for Regional Center, Medi-Cal, and IHSS, so these programs will continue. U.S. mail service will also continue.
Some federal government departments will close. The California Department of Developmental Services says, “The public can expect less help and slower help from other federal agencies during a federal government shutdown.“
At the Department of Education (ED), 2,117 remaining employees who don’t work on federal student aid will be furloughed without pay in the first week. 270 essential employees will keep the department running. If the shutdown lasts more than a week, the department expects to bring up to 330 employees back, which would keep about 87 percent of the workforce furloughed, according to the agency’s draft plans.
During past shutdowns, all the staff from the Office of Civil Rights (OCR) have typically been furloughed. This means that OCR complaints from families and individuals with disabilities will not be investigated, increasing the current back log. Grantees will still be able to access their awarded funds, but the department will not release any new grants during a shutdown, so new applications for Part D funding will not be determined.
The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) employs almost 80,000 employees. According to Federal News Network, “About 32,000 would be furloughed during a shutdown, 35,000 would be exempt, and about 22,000 would be excepted. Excepted activities would include Medicare and Medicaid support, health care fraud and abuse work, emergency readiness, and exempted FDA drug and medical device reviews.”
A lot depends on how long the shutdown lasts. Disability Scoop reported that special education administrators are extremely concerned about what happens if the shutdown is still in place when it comes time to release special education funding to the states. It remains to be seen whether there will be staff available to send the funds in a timely manner.
Protection and advocacy organizations such as Disability Rights California, the State Council for Developmental Disabilities, and LEND also depend on federal funds. They likely have funding to tide them over but cannot continue to help families without funding coming in indefinitely.
Worse affected, of course, are the furloughed workers; if this includes you, your Regional Center service coordinator may be able to assist your family.
