Niraj Chokshi and Christina Caron

<h1>The partial government shutdown is nearing the two-week mark, but many core functions remain unaffected. Mail is being delivered, the military is still funded, law enforcement personnel continue to work and entitlement programs are still running.</h1>

Still, many operations have ceased and about 800,000 government employees are affected, with just under half sent home on unpaid leave and just over half working without pay.

If past shutdowns are any indication, those employees can expect to receive back pay, but federal contractors have complained that they have no such expectation.

Here’s a brief look at some of the government functions that the shutdown has affected, and those it hasn’t.

— Parks and museums

Most national parks are closed to visitors, and while some have remained open despite bare-bones staffing, the National Park Service has warned that “access may change without notice.”

Take Joshua Tree National Park, about 130 miles from Los Angeles. It closed Wednesday at noon, in part because the park service could not keep up with the mess left by visitors.

“The park is being forced to take this action for health and safety concerns as vault toilets reach capacity,” the park service said Monday. “In addition to human waste in public areas, driving off road and other infractions that damage the resource are becoming a problem.”

On Wednesday, the Smithsonian announced that all 19 of its museums and the National Zoo were closed because of the shutdown. (“Essential personnel” are on hand to care for the animals at the zoo.)

The National Gallery of Art was open Wednesday but said its status on Thursday was “yet to be determined.”

Under the shutdown, most IRS operations have stopped. According to a contingency plan covering the final weeks of December, only about 1 in 8 of the agency’s nearly 80,000 employees were slated to work.

That plan does not make clear, though, what the IRS will do as the shutdown extends into January. (Tax filing season has not yet begun, but the agency will no doubt face plenty of questions from filers as the 2017 tax law goes into effect this year for the first time.) The agency did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

— Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid

Fear not, seniors of America: The Social Security checks are still coming. (And the Postal Service will still deliver them.)

That’s because the Social Security Administration already received funding for the 2019 fiscal year, in September, according to Mark Hinkle, an agency spokesman.

“Social Security services and offices will remain fully operational, and Social Security benefits will be paid on time,” he said in an emailed statement.

It is not the only entitlement program spared from the shutdown. Medicare and Medicaid are also unaffected.

— The Mueller investigation

The office of the special counsel, Robert Mueller, does not rely on congressional action for funding, so its investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election has continued unimpeded.

— The Federal Aviation Administration

While air traffic control operations continue to run, other functions of the Federal Aviation Administration are restricted.

In Michigan, Sheriff Bill Federspiel of Saginaw County has complained that the shutdown is costing his department, which has had to guard the site of a fatal plane crash as it waits on the FAA to send an investigator.

“It may end up being where we have that plane taken from the scene and stored at a hangar,” Federspiel told WJRT, a local ABC affiliate. “That’s my option for them if they say they can’t come right away — we’re not going to guard a plane in a park forever.”

Greg Martin, an FAA spokesman, confirmed that the agency did not have an inspector to send to the site of the Michigan crash, in which one person died, adding that it has had to prioritize how it uses its limited resources.

“If there was a major commercial incident or accident, then we would have inspectors available immediately,” he said.

Border Patrol and Transportation Security Administration agents will continue to work without pay, as well.

— Veterans’ benefits

As the shutdown began to take hold before Christmas, Robert Wilkie, the secretary of Veterans Affairs, said in a statement that his department would be unaffected because it was fully funded through the 2019 fiscal year.

“We thank the president and Congress for their commitment to our nation’s heroes in funding VA, and stand ready to provide all of the VA benefits and services our veterans have earned,” he said.

— Food aid and inspections

The 40 million or so people who receive food stamps will still get the benefit for January, according to the Agriculture Department, which administers the program. Other aid programs focused on child nutrition, including school lunch and breakfast programs, will also continue operating into February, the department said.

Food assistance programs for women, children and infants and for people on Native American reservations can continue to operate at the state and local levels, depending on what funding remains, but federal funds will not support those programs until the shutdown ends, the department added.

The department will continue to inspect meat, poultry, eggs, grain and other commodities, it said.

— The Violence Against Women Act

The Violence Against Women Act expired last month when the government shut down. First passed in 1994, the act helps survivors of domestic violence, stalking and sexual assault with programs administered through the Justice Department and the Health and Human Services Department.

Those programs will continue despite the shutdown, provided they already have funding through grants. The shutdown will, however, delay payment requests from programs funded by the law, The Washington Post reported.

“Local programs have other sources of funds, but when they are in a situation where they’ve done the work that is federally funded and they aren’t able to reimburse for it, it certainly puts them in a financial bind and can be detrimental to the programs for sure,” said Monica McLaughlin, director of public policy at the National Network to End Domestic Violence.

Those on the front lines who are doing lifesaving work will continue to help survivors, she added, but may not be reimbursed depending on how long the shutdown continues.

“It’s hard to know what the actual impact will be,” McLaughlin said. “But I know it’s anxiety-producing at the least.”

This article originally appeared in <a id="8fcbe869-62c9-4dd3-946f-8d5cd6b73884" href="https://www.nytimes.com/2019/01/02/us/whats-affected-government-shutdown.html">The New York Times</a>.

What Is and Isn't Affected by the Government Shutdown

Still, many operations have ceased and about 800,000 government employees are affected, with just under half sent home on unpaid leave and just over half working without pay

What is and isn't affected by the government shutdown

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Niraj Chokshi and Christina Caron

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What is and isn't affected by the government shutdown