Among the thousands of federal workers on furlough and agencies brought to a standstill, the temporary shutdown of the U.S. government has shuttered one North Shore institution – the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy in Kings Point.
The service academy, which trains midshipmen for military service and careers in the maritime industry, ceased its operations Tuesday after Congress failed to approve funding for the federal government amid Republican demands to modify or defund President Barack Obama’s signature health care law.
“We will be out of the office due to a lapse in funding. Please call back after news reports advise of a resumption of services by all federal agencies,” was the only comment from the academy available to the Blank Slate Media – a voicemail message left by the academy’s furloughed external relations staff.
The academy is overseen by the U.S. Department of Transportation, which like other federal agencies stopped its non-essential operations after the funding deadline passed at midnight on Monday.
According to the transportation department’s contingency plan for the shutdown, the academy will temporarily maintain staff required for the safety and welfare of students, but the campus could be vacated should the impasse continue.
“Should the shutdown last more than a few days, without support programs, the approximately 720 students on campus will have the option of going home until operations resume,” transportation department spokesperson Meghan Keck wrote in an e-mail. “The 225 Midshipmen at sea on four-month or eight-month training cruises will be allowed to continue.”
The department’s plan also notes that due to the academy’s year-round operations, a lengthy shutdown could disrupt the school’s academic schedule.
“Because the academy’s academic calendar is nearly-year round, it will be difficult to make up more than a few lost days of classes,” Keck wrote “A prolonged shutdown could endanger the Academy’s accreditation.”
The department’s Maritime Administration, the division which oversees the academy, was scheduled to furlough 451 of its 830 staff, according to the contingency plan.
The federal government entered the shutdown after the latest continuing resolution to fund its operations expired Tuesday.
Congressional Republicans demanded alterations to Obama’s Affordable Care Act and passed a funding resolution that would have delayed key provisions of the law, but Obama and fellow Democrats insisted on a resolution that would have funded the government without conditions.
The Republican-controlled House of Representatives and Democratic-controlled Senate failed to agree on a measure, sending the government into its first shutdown since 1996.
