Shutdown halts federal government, WNC braces again
The federal shutdown has now entered week two.
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On Oct. 1, Republican-controlled Congress shut down the federal government, bringing a renewed round of confusion, finger-pointing and uncertainty to tourism-reliant Southern Appalachia — a region still paying the price for generational poverty, and still struggling with recovery from Hurricane Helene more than one year ago.
Shutdowns have been a feature of American politics for nearly half a century, but the tactic has become more common in recent decades and longer in duration. What began as a budgetary technicality has now become a policy weapon, wielded by both major parties at different times.
At the heart of every shutdown is the Antideficiency Act, originally passed in 1884 but subsequently amended many times. The law forbids the federal government from making expenditures or even accruing obligations without approved funding.
In practice, that means when appropriations bills aren’t enacted on time, federal agencies must wind down operations to avoid creating debt they cannot legally incur. Since the mid-1970s, that requirement has been interpreted strictly — without a budget, agencies begin shuttering offices, furloughing staff and halting nonessential services.
The distinction between “essential” and “nonessential” employees has become one of the most visible features of a shutdown. Federal workers who are considered essential — air traffic controllers, Transportation Security Administration officers, the military — are still required to report for duty, but their paychecks are delayed indefinitely. For many families, that creates an immediate strain as bills come due without any certainty of when income will arrive.
Meanwhile, nonessential staff, including park rangers, clerks and researchers, are sent home, forbidden from working until funding is restored.
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Despite full Republican control of the federal government — the White House, the Senate, the House — some federal agencies have explicitly blamed “radical left Democrats” for the shutdown by posting statements on their websites. According to the Federal News Network, furloughed employees at the Department of Education found their automatic out-of-office email messages had been updated without their knowledge to blame Senate Democrats specifically.
According to government watchdogs, the false statements violate the Hatch Act, which prohibits using government resources to advance explicitly partisan messaging.
Democrats, though in the minority, do share at least some responsibility. They’ve dismissed several Republican plans without putting forward workable substitutes or showing the flexibility that might have accelerated a deal. Internal disagreements within the caucus have also weakened their response at key moments, undercutting their ability to bargain effectively — a perilous position, as the historical record suggests the longer a shutdown lasts, the more acute the pain becomes.
The first shutdown tied to a funding lapse took place in 1980, during the administration of President Jimmy Carter, when the Federal Trade Commission was shuttered for a single day.
Similar single-day stoppages occurred under President Ronald Reagan in 1981, 1984 and 1986, often the result of presidential vetoes.
In 1990, President George H.W. Bush’s reversal of his “read my lips, no new taxes” pledge provoked strong opposition in the House, and the government shut down for three days.
A few years later, President Bill Clinton and House Republicans led by Georgia congressman and Speaker Newt Gingrich clashed over spending priorities. The result was a five-day shutdown in November 1995, followed by a 22-day shutdown that stretched from mid-December into early January 1996. At the time, it was the longest shutdown in history.
The cycle continued into the 21st century. In 2013, Republican opposition to the Affordable Care Act led to a 16-day shutdown under President Barack Obama.
In October of that year, the Great Smoky Mountains National Park — the country’s most visited — was abruptly closed. Barricades were erected at entrances, rangers were furloughed and local residents who relied on park roads for commuting were blocked.
“We love this area. We love coming to the park, and we spend a lot of money in this town,” Joe Parker, a Florida resident who visited the Deep Creek campground only to find it closed, told The Smoky Mountain News at the time. “It’s really too bad. We’re retired, so we’re pretty flexible with our plans, but I can imagine this shutdown has ruined many vacations.”
As the shutdown continued, the impact on tourism became clear. October is peak season in the Smokies and the sudden loss of access threatened hotels, restaurants and outfitters.
The Blue Ridge Parkway remained drivable, but restrooms were locked, trails were closed and services were unavailable. Visitors who did arrive found themselves restricted to roadside views — euphemistically called “windshield experiences.”
The effects of the 2013 shutdown, however, stretched far beyond public lands. Federal workers were sent home, veterans waited longer for benefits and community services tied to federal programs began to stall. The economic fallout touched local governments, families and small businesses alike.
Businesses connected to national parks and forests reported collapsing revenues. Gift shops emptied. Restaurants cut staff hours. Outfitters canceled trips.
“I’ve had to cease all my tours,” Esther Blakely, owner of Cataloochee Valley Tours, said Oct. 8, 2013. “I don’t know what else to say.”
Families faced difficult choices as federal subsidies dried up. Childcare centers that relied on federal reimbursements teetered on the edge of closure, leaving parents scrambling.
Five years later, the cycle repeated itself. Early in 2018, during Donald Trump’s first term as president, a dispute over immigration and Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals funding produced a three-day shutdown.
Near the end of that year, another shutdown began Dec. 22, 2018, and continued for 35 days — the longest in American history. By the time it ended, hundreds of thousands of federal workers had missed paychecks, and services from national parks to nutritional assistance programs had been disrupted. The ripple effects lingered well into 2019, leaving scars across WNC’s economy and testing the patience of residents.
During that shutdown, the federal government took a different approach to public lands than it did in 2013 — keep them open, but suspend upkeep and oversight.
“It’s sort of like having a restaurant and saying, ‘The restaurant needs to close for whatever reason, but we’re not going to close. We’re going to leave the restaurant open and we’re going to leave the food in here and turn the grill on and you all go at it,’” Carolyn Ward, current CEO of the Blue Ridge Parkway Foundation, said at the time. “It’s a little bit insane.”
By early January, conditions in the Smokies had deteriorated substantially. Trash cans overflowed, visitor centers were shuttered and safety hazards piled up with no rangers to respond.
Local residents stepped in where the government had withdrawn. Volunteers cleaned bathrooms, picked up trash and tried to help maintain the park. Philanthropic support also helped bridge the gap; a $65,000 donation allowed visitor centers to open during the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday weekend.
The Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians, heavily involved in the region’s outdoor economy, soon weighed in by petitioning then-congressman Mark Meadows (R-Asheville) to help resolve the stalemate, warning of economic harm to Cherokee businesses tied to tourism.
Limited relief did come when the park tapped entrance fee revenues to restore some services. Restrooms reopened and some facilities returned, but staffing remained skeletal.
When the shutdown finally ended on Jan. 25, 2019, the damage was clear. Federal employees returned to work, but missed paychecks, canceled vacations and months of uncertainty left scars that stretched through the year.
Even with those setbacks, the Smokies proved resilient. Data from the North Carolina Department of Revenue show that despite the shutdown that lasted most of January, sales tax revenues still grew, year over year, in Haywood, Jackson and Macon Counties, but dipped slightly in Swain County. By the end of 2019, visitation numbers had climbed, masking the real hardship faced by families and small businesses that had endured weeks without support.
Whether that happens this time will become more apparent as the shutdown continues.
The current impasse stems from Republican leaders in Congress advancing a so-called “clean” funding measure that left out Democratic priorities for health and social programs.
One of those priorities, the failure to renew enhanced premium tax credits — temporary subsidies enacted by the Biden administration during the Coronavirus Pandemic — would have sweeping effects across the country and across the region.
The credits lower monthly health insurance costs for more than 24 million working adults and families who buy coverage through the Affordable Care Act marketplace. According to the Kaiser Family Foundation, in 2014 more than 357,000 people in North Carolina selected a marketplace plan. In 2025, it was more than 957,000.
Without congressional action, those subsidies will expire at the end of 2025, leaving many residents facing sharp premium increases as soon as new rates take effect this fall.
“We’ve been dreading it, because it’s just going to mean giving a lot of bad news to people,” said Jessi Stone, regional director of the health and economic opportunity program at Pisgah Legal Services.
Across the region, rural areas are still recovering from job loss and displacement attributable to Helene, making the situation all the more dire for some.
“We are dealing with so many other issues — people have spent their savings, people have lost jobs, lost their homes, so to try to reach in their pockets and find extra money for their health care cost is going to be really hard for people,” Stone said. “We anticipate a lot of people just aren’t going to be able to afford it.”
While it’s unclear exactly how much premiums will rise, experts anticipate major sticker shock, with some projecting rates could triple. That could lead to reduced enrollment, which would prompt insurers to raise premiums to make up for the loss in revenue, which in turn would result in an uptick in uninsured residents.
Health advocates warn the consequences could extend beyond household budgets; without affordable coverage, more people will delay care until emergencies arise, straining vulnerable rural hospitals and clinics.
“We’ve been doing navigator work since 2013. We know how important it is for people to have affordable, quality health care coverage and services. It just impacts everything in our community and economy,” said Stone, adding that marketplace plans also make it easier for people to start their own businesses without having to rely on a corporate employer for health care coverage.
Along with other nonprofits in the region, Pisgah Legal Services expects to see increased demand for help as open enrollment begins Nov. 1. Stone urged people with marketplace plans to review those plans and contact a navigator well before the enrollment period begins.
In much of the United States — and in WNC — the line between what remains operational and what doesn’t can be confusing.
The U.S. Postal Service keeps delivering mail, because it is funded through its own revenue. Social Security and Medicare continue paying benefits, because those programs operate under mandatory spending that isn’t tied to annual appropriations. Medicaid, food stamps and unemployment insurance also keep flowing in the short term. Federal courts remain open, although they may begin to scale back staffing if the lapse in funding continues.
Other services quickly freeze. Passport offices stop processing applications. Inspections of food plants, environmental permits and workplace safety checks stall. Contractors stop receiving payments for ongoing work. Research programs at universities and labs funded by federal grants grind to a halt. Federal agency websites may or may not be updated.
For much of the region, there’s an even bigger concern that could make the shutdown a double dose of disaster: counties like Haywood are still awaiting millions of dollars in reimbursements for recovery work related to Hurricane Helene.
In the midst of the mounting anxiety, a spokesperson for the Federal Emergency Management Agency told SMN on Oct. 1 its disaster operations would continue during the shutdown. Hazard mitigation programs, emergency management training and floodplain mapping all continue, at least for now. Most importantly, the distribution of reimbursements will not stop.
That leaves the most visible and concerning closures in WNC as the region’s public lands. On Oct. 1, Cades Cove Loop Road, Cades Cove Picnic Area, Cades Cove Visitor Center, Chimneys Picnic Area and Sugarlands Visitor Center all closed.
October is normally a high point of the tourism calendar, drawing leaf-peepers from across the country to the Smokies. Hotels, restaurants and outfitters depend on those crowds to make ends’ meet. Around this time last year, many businesses in WNC were still mucking out their shops, trying to pick up the pieces from a devastating 1,000-year storm. Those who survived have been counting on a big fall season.
Instead, business owners fielded cancellations while bracing for a downturn just as their busiest season should be hitting stride.
One of the bigger drivers of visitation in the Smokies is the wedding industry.
“We’re all concerned about the shutdown,” said Ron Crivellone, who with his wife owns and operates Smokey Mountain Sounds, an event lighting and DJ service. “We’re trying to keep on top of it and also to ensure our information [about closures] is correct.”
Crivellone also serves as president of the Smoky Mountain Wedding Association, a nonprofit that promotes the industry across the region, and said he was already aware of at least one bride who had to scramble for an alternate venue when the venue she’d selected more than a year prior — Cades Cove — was closed. His wife Ellen said she had to help with a backup plan for another bride that had reserved Spence Cabin, near Elkmont. She fears more closures could be coming.
“Up until a few years ago, [the park] issued only a few hundred licenses and permits [for events like weddings] but now they issue many more,” Ron said. “There’s a lot going on in this industry. There are elopements and weddings every day in the park.”
Ron said the situation is especially worrying this year because the area has already faced challenges — the closure of Interstate 40 in the wake of Helene and a landslide on U.S. 441 that briefly severed an important artery through the park have slowed business for some.
“I don’t want to see any bride left without accommodations, but I’m more concerned in general for the area,” he said. “The fall season is what a lot of businesses like mine rely on to get through the winter months.”
That’s a fact not lost on Corrina Ruffieux, executive director of the Haywood County Tourism Development Authority.
Ruffieux said that after Helene last fall, local tourism suffered losses on a scale “of which we’ve never seen and hopefully will never see again.” Occupancy tax collections for October 2024 were down on the order of 40% compared to the year before, and the effects rippled through restaurants, shops and attractions that depend on visitors for survival.
“We do not need another repeat of last October,” she said. “If people aren’t traveling, they’re also not visiting our local attractions, shops, restaurants — and sales tax numbers, of course, reflect those decreases as well.”
For now, she said, many destinations in the region remain unaffected.
“Cataloochee Valley is open. Oconaluftee Visitor Center is open. Sunburst Campground is open. All 46 miles of the Blue Ridge Parkway [in Haywood County] are open,” said Ruffieux. “We have a great story up and down Western North Carolina that simply says, ‘We’re open, come visit. It’s a beautiful time of year.’”
To drive that message home, Ruffieux said the TDA has posted banners on its website, Visit Haywood, as has the state’s tourism agency, Visit NC. Visit Haywood has also shared information on its social media feeds and pushed out emails assuring visitors that parks and roads remain accessible.
“We’re really leaning into what is open, as opposed to focusing on anything that may be closed,” she said. “If the open piece changes, then that will have a significant impact on tourism. In Haywood in particular, our top three attractions are public lands, federally operated, and if they close, that’s really going to impact our small businesses that rely on those visitors for spending.”
At a broader level, Ruffieux urged federal lawmakers to put aside partisan conflict.
“Everybody in the travel and tourism industry — U.S. Travel Association, Destinations International and state offices of tourism, down to local offices — we just encourage our congressional representatives to find a way to come to a compromise and get back open,” she said. “Our country needs it, and in Western North Carolina in particular, we absolutely need our October and we need to keep everything open.”
On Oct. 4, the locations in the park that had closed on Oct. 1 — including Cades Cove — reopened. Per a statement issued by Sevier County government, a coalition of Tennessee agencies along with Friends of the Smokies and the Eastern Band will pay $61,703.18 each day to keep the facilities staffed and ready for visitors, however there are no assurances on how long that philanthropy will last.
The shutdown will, as is always the case, affect more than just tourism. Families that rely on childcare subsidies, housing assistance or nutrition programs are watching closely. While funding continues for now, prolonged delays could dry up reimbursements and force providers to cut back or close.
Haywood County Health and Human Services officials say the federal shutdown has not yet disrupted operations, but uncertainty looms as contingency funds dwindle.
Nearly every program within the department relies on federal dollars in some way, from administrative costs to direct benefits like WIC and SNAP. The agency’s total budget for the fiscal year is about $24.4 million, with federal sources accounting for slightly more than half.
On the public health side, programs such as immunization, family planning and child health are supported by varying levels of federal funds ranging from 48% to 100%.
For now, all services continue as usual, including WIC, which remains operational under USDA contingency funding.
“We have heard with SNAP that things will be OK at least for October and await further information,” said Ira Dove, Haywood HHS director. “We are planning to provide Meals on Wheels and Maple Leaf Adult Daycare services in October knowing that there will be a delay in reimbursement.”
County officials expect at least three days’ notice before any changes and say programs like child welfare, adult protection and Medicaid services will continue regardless. Medicaid reimbursements and other billable health services remain insulated from the shutdown’s immediate effects.
In past shutdowns, the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services has directed counties to continue providing services, covering delays in federal reimbursements.
That precedent may hold again, but to date, the county has received no indication of bridge funding from the state, leaving the region once again caught in the crossfire of national dysfunction — a region still clawing back from a natural disaster now forced to brace for a human-caused disaster.
From tourism to health care, from public lands to human services, the shutdown’s reach will be broad and unpredictable. What remains is a familiar blend of resilience, fatigue and the uneasy recognition that, until Congress finds the will to govern, communities in WNC will continue to pay the price.
