US government is shut down again - why does it keep happening?

Partisan stand-offs over spending force federal agencies to halt range of services

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Government shutdowns have become a recurring feature of US politics, the product of partisan standoffs over spending that force federal agencies to halt a wide range of services.

The latest shutdown - the third under US President Donald Trump across his two terms - began at midnight on Oct 1, when Congress failed to pass a stopgap funding measure, triggering the nation's first government closure in almost seven years.

Democrats are demanding that a stopgap Bill include an extension of Affordable Care Act premium subsidies and a reversal of Medicaid funding cuts - conditions Republicans have rejected, leaving the two sides deadlocked and the shutdown unresolved. Democrats also want new restrictions on Mr Trump's ability to refuse to spend money appropriated by Congress.

The White House's budget office ordered agencies to begin executing their plans for a funding lapse, shuttering the government aside from essential duties. Mr Trump has threatened to use the shutdown to fire federal workers en masse.

Here's what to know about how US shutdowns work and what they mean for government services.

WHY DOES THE GOVERNMENT SHUT DOWN?

The US government runs on 12 appropriations Bills passed each year by Congress and signed by the president. In fiscal years like the one about to begin, when all 12 Bills are not adopted by the start of the fiscal year on Oct 1 - the current count is zero, for those keeping score - Congress and the president keep the machinery of government humming by passing short-term extensions of current funding, known formally as continuing resolutions (CR).

If they can't agree to a CR, the government has what is called a funding gap and federal agencies may need to take steps to shut down.

For fiscal year 2025, Congress has passed three such temporary funding patches, with the final one coming in March. At the end of September, it failed to pass a fourth, triggering a shutdown.