U.S Government Shut down at Midnight: Effects on Boulder
Sep 30th
A government shutdown has a significant and direct impact on Boulder, particularly due to the city’s large concentration of federal labs and employees. The effects ripple through the local economy, from missed paychecks for federal workers to disruptions in scientific research and local businesses.
Impacts on federal employees and contractors
- Furloughs and missed paychecks: Boulder is home to a dozen federally funded research labs and approximately 1,700 federal employees, along with thousands more whose jobs are tied to federal funding. Furloughed employees will miss paychecks, creating economic hardship for many families.
- Federal contractors: Unlike direct federal employees, government contractors are not guaranteed back pay once a shutdown ends. This places many contractors in aerospace, defense, and research industries in a precarious financial situation.
- Potential layoffs: Recent reporting has indicated that mass layoffs of federal employees have already occurred in some agencies in the region, with more potentially coming during a shutdown.
Impacts on research and science
- Boulder’s federal labs: Prominent federal facilities in Boulder, including those at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), are heavily affected.
- Furloughs and staffing cuts will stall critical scientific research.
- Reports indicate that budget cuts have already affected these facilities, leading to a “brain drain” of talented scientists seeking more stable employment.
- University of Colorado Boulder (CU Boulder): A significant amount of research funding for CU Boulder comes from federal agencies like NASA, the National Science Foundation, and the National Institutes of Health.
- Since early 2025, CU Boulder has faced cancellations and pauses on dozens of grants, totaling tens of millions of dollars in lost funding.
- A shutdown would further exacerbate this, delaying projects, affecting students, and potentially driving faculty and researchers away.
Economic and community impacts
- Local businesses: With federal workers missing paychecks, local businesses—including restaurants and retail stores—will see a drop in consumer spending. Colorado’s governor, Jared Polis, has stated that shutdowns have historically caused billions of dollars in lost economic activity.
- Small business loans: The Small Business Administration (SBA) will not process new loans for small businesses, putting a hold on financial support for many local entrepreneurs.
- Social services: Programs that rely on federal funding, such as the Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC), could see their funding dry up, though the governor has taken steps to secure some state funding to cover the gap.
Visitor services and national parks
- Rocky Mountain National Park: Governor Polis has expressed willingness to use limited state funds to keep Rocky Mountain National Park open, as it is a major economic driver for the state. In previous shutdowns, the closure of national parks hurt local economies.
- Essential services: Some services, such as air traffic control and weather forecasting, are generally considered essential and are expected to continue, though delays and maintenance issues can arise in a prolonged shutdown.
Certain government services are not affected by a government shutdown either because they are deemed essential for public safety or because their funding is not dependent on annual appropriations. While essential federal employees must continue working, their pay is withheld until the shutdown ends.
Services funded by mandatory spending
These are programs funded by permanent law, not annual appropriations, so they continue without interruption.
- Social Security: Payments for Social Security and Supplemental Security Income (SSI) continue to be paid. However, non-critical administrative tasks, such as benefit verification and issuing replacement Social Security cards, may be suspended.
- Medicare and Medicaid: Benefits and payments for Medicare and Medicaid continue normally, though some services could be slowed by staffing shortages.
- Other benefits: Veterans benefits (including health care services, disability, and pension payments) and unemployment benefits are generally unaffected.
- SNAP: Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits continue in the short term, though a prolonged shutdown could threaten payments.
Essential services for public safety
These services are legally required to continue, with essential employees working without pay during the shutdown.
- Law enforcement and border security: The FBI, Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), and other federal law enforcement agencies, including Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Customs and Border Protection (CBP), continue operations.
- Military: All active-duty military personnel, along with Reservists on active duty, must continue working.
- Air travel: Transportation Security Administration (TSA) agents, Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers, and air traffic controllers continue to work. A prolonged shutdown could cause delays due to workers calling out.
- Emergency and medical care: Inpatient and emergency medical care, including VA medical facilities, remains operational.
- Disaster relief: The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) will continue to respond to emergencies.
- Critical health activities: The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) will continue to handle drug and device recalls, monitor foodborne illnesses, and respond to other imminent public health threats.
Fee-funded and independent services
Services funded by fees or that operate independently from the annual appropriations process can continue.
- U.S. Postal Service: As a self-funded entity, the USPS is not impacted by a shutdown, and mail delivery continues as usual.
- Consular and immigration services: Passport, visa, and other consular services primarily funded by user fees are expected to continue. However, staffing issues could cause delays, especially during a longer shutdown.
Impacted services
Some services may experience partial impacts or be threatened if a shutdown is prolonged:
- WIC: Funding for the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) could run out quickly, potentially within a week, threatening benefits for families.
- Student Loans and Pell Grants: While disbursements may continue briefly using carryover funds, staffing reductions will cause delays in processing, and a prolonged shutdown could exhaust funding.
- Small Business Administration (SBA): The SBA would stop processing new business loans.
- National Parks: Although parks often remain physically accessible, visitor centers close, and services like trash collection and road maintenance stop.
However, if Trump shuts down NIST, NOAA, and NCAR. that will be a loss of 30,000 jobs @$200,000. ea and a lost of 6 Billions dollars annually to the Boulder Economy this is the tsunami the city is not prepared for
Boulder starts cattle grazing to prevent wild land fires like Marshall
Sep 29th
Had the city of Boulder used cattle grazing on 36 up to Davidson Mesa , they might have prevented the Marshall Fire
City of Boulder welcomes cattle west of the Dakota Ridge neighborhood for grazing program
The City of Boulder is expanding targeted cattle grazing to reduce wildfire risk, which is recommended in the city’s Community Wildfire Protection Plan. This grazing project is the city’s second of the year and will occur September 29 – October 6 west of the Dakota Ridge neighborhood (between Lee Hill Drive and 10th Street).
Temporary electric fencing will be in place to contain the cattle. Visitors are asked to avoid the fences and cattle and keep pets under control while in the area. The city reminds visitors to respect cattle, which will be contained within temporary electric fencing. Visitors should not approach the fences or the cattle, and they should be mindful of their pets while recreating in the area.
“We are excited to partner again with our local cowboys and cattle for this program,” said Paul Dennison, Wildland Fire Senior Program Manager for the City of Boulder. “Observations and monitoring following the 2022 NCAR Fire indicated that targeted cattle grazing and other city-led mitigation work, including forest thinning, helped slow the fire’s spread and reduce its intensity.”
The City of Boulder has worked with local ranchers to bring cattle to city-managed land with the goal of reducing grass height and thatch fuel loads to minimize wildfire risks. The location, timing, and duration of grazing have been strategically planned to maximize wildfire risk reduction while minimizing impacts to sensitive natural areas.
“Cattle grazing is one of many city efforts identified in the Community Wildfire Protection Plan to remove hazardous fuels and reduce wildfire risks on both public and private lands, and is one of the most visual,” said City Manager Nuria Rivera-Vandermyde. “The work the city is doing is most successful when it happens alongside wildfire resilience work that members of our community also complete, like home hardening and creating defensible space.”
Trail Access and Safety During Grazing Operations
Upcoming grazing will occur east of the Four Mile Creek Trailhead and South Foothills Trail. Trails may be closed for short periods of time while the cattle are being moved, but otherwise no trail or area closures are planned. Please respect all closure signs.
Wildfire resilience in the City of Boulder is a shared responsibility. The pilot grazing program complements the city-wide Wildfire Ready Initiative which brings together projects identified within the CWPP and other city plans that prioritize wildfire resilience projects and programs.
You can find more information about cattle grazing and numerous other projects and programs that are helping to reduce our wildfire risk at bouldercolorado.gov/
