THE U.S Government Shut Down … At midnight on Tuesday, September 30th, the US government shutdown due to Congress’s inability to agree and approve the fy26 budget. This shutdown affects most federal agencies and employees.

COM Land-Grant Program’s Status … As a result of this shutdown, the COM LGP is unable to drawdown funds from ASAP.gov because it is closed and will remain closed until the US government reopens for normal business. This is the major issue that the program is facing at the moment. Fortunately, there are still obligated funds available in the program’s local accounts that will hopefully sustain the program’s operations for the next two months if the shutdown is prolonged for two months. To help ensure these limited funds are used effectively and efficiently, a Contingency Plan is already in place that limits expenditures to only essential activities such as personnel, utilities and ongoing contractual obligations. 

What To Expect … Delayed payments to vendors / contractors or delayed reimbursements to the program’s three partner colleges (CMI, COM-FSM and PCC) where the Cooperative Research and Extension teams and activities are administered.