The National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) furloughed more than three-quarters of its staff on Monday as the government shutdown nears its fourth week.
An Energy Department spokesperson told The Hill that 1,400 NNSA employees will be furloughed by the end of Monday, leaving fewer than 400 people working at the agency, which is in charge of overseeing the nation’s nuclear stockpile.
“Due to the Democrat shutdown, approximately 1,400 NNSA federal employees will be furloughed as of today, October 20, and approximately 400 NNSA federal employees will continue to work in support of the protection of property and the protection of human life,” the spokesperson said in a statement.
The spokesperson said NNSA’s Office of Safe Transportation will be funded for another week, until October 27.
Energy Department spokesman Ben Dieterich told CNN This is the first time in NNSA’s 25-year history that it has furloughed employees during the shutdown.
“This time we have no choice. We have increased funding as long as we could,” Dietderichs said.
“While the Department of Energy and NNSA are committed to ensuring the security of the U.S. nuclear deterrent, the longer the shutdown lasts, the more damaging and severe the consequences will be for workforce retention and weapons modernization efforts critical to national security,” Dietderichs said in a statement to CNN.
the government is 20th day of shutdownBecause no real dialogue seems to be going on between the two sides. Democrats continued to push for an extension of enhanced Affordable Care Act (ACA) subsidies, which are set to expire at the end of the year, before throwing their support behind a GOP proposal to reopen the government.
philip Timotija contributed reporting.
