US Chamber Says Government Shutdown Costs Contractors $3 Billion a Week

The government shutdown is putting at risk $3 billion a week that would have been earned by 65,500 small business contractors, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce said in an article posted Thursday (Oct. 30).

That revenue is at risk because the contractors’ work can come to a halt if it is funded with discretionary appropriations that have lapsed, and because, unlike furloughed federal employees, federal contractors providing services to the government historically have not received back pay when the government reopens, according to the article.

Because of the current government shutdown, which began Oct. 1, small business contractors already have $12 billion at risk in the month of October, per the article.

There are small business contractors in all 50 states, according to the article. Last year, collectively, they received over $155 billion in payment for goods and services they provided to the federal government.

In a letter addressed to members of the U.S. Congress and dated Thursday, Neil L. Bradley, executive vice president, chief policy officer and head of strategic advocacy at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, shared the organization’s findings with lawmakers.

“The Chamber is again calling on Congress to immediately pass the continuing resolution to reopen and fund the government,” Bradley wrote in the letter. “We also urge Congress to consider ways to help make federal contractors, especially small business contractors, whole.”

In a statement released before the government shutdown, on Sept. 29, Bradley urged Congress and the Administration to prevent a shutdown, saying it would be harmful to the economy, national security and the American people.

“In communities across the country, businesses and Americans rely on the functions of government,” Bradley said. “From passports and permits to clinical trials and air travel, a well-functioning economy requires a functioning government.”

The Congressional Budget Office, which performs nonpartisan analysis for the U.S. Congress, released a report Wednesday (Oct. 29) that said the government shutdown could reduce real gross domestic product by $7 billion if it lasts four weeks, $11 billion if its lasts six weeks and $14 billion if it lasts eight weeks.

“Although most of the decline in real GDP will be recovered eventually, CBO estimates that between $7 billionand $14 billion (in 2025 dollars) will not be,” CBO said in a summary of its findings.