Government shutdown would impact Coast [The Brunswick News, Ga.]

Sept. 28--1Without authorization to allow the government to continue spending after its fiscal year ends at midnight Monday, a partial government shutdown will shutter three national parks in Southeast Georgia, force layoffs of noncritical civilian employees at Naval Submarine Base Kings Bay and leave federal courts with only enough money to operate for a week.

In addition, home buyers seeking government-backed mortgages and military veterans appealing denials of benefits will be left waiting without furloughed government workers to process their paperwork.

Mail will continue to be delivered, because the Postal Service is an independent agency that must pay its own way, and the National Weather Service will continue to make forecasts and monitor the waning weeks of hurricane season.

At the heart of the showdown is a demand by insurgent Republicans -- led by Sens. Ted Cruz of Texas and Mike Lee of Utah -- that Congress strip funding from the Affordable Care Act in exchange for allowing spending to continue for the government's other ongoing operations.

Ironically, a government shutdown would have virtually no impact on the health care law detractors largely refer to as Obamacare.

With parts of the three-year-old law already in effect, such as allowing adult children to remain on parents' health coverage until they are 26 years old, a new phase rolls out Tuesday. Insurance exchanges, in which uninsured or under-insured individuals can shop for subsidized policies, will open, whether the government is fully operating or not.

At Fort Frederica, the national historic site on St. Simons Island, Superintendent Mary Beth Wester said Friday employees hope congressional leaders can reach an agreement to avoid a shutdown. The park definitely would be affected if leaders fail, she said.

Cumberland Island National Seashore, in Camden County, is also making preparations if Congress can't reach a compromise.

Fred Boyles, superintendent of the national seashore, said the ferry will transport campers on the island back to the mainland Tuesday and all operations on the island and in downtown St. Marys will close without an agreement.

"In the unlikely event there is a government shutdown, we have begun some prudent planning if we have to do it," Boyles said.

Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge, in part of Ware County, will be required to close all grounds and facilities to the public, including concession operations, the visitor center, boat ramps and all boating and hiking trails. (Stephen C. Foster State Park, at the west side of the refuge, will also close areas outside of the Jones Island Tract.)

At Naval Submarine Base Kings Bay in Camden County, active-duty military will remain on the job, but civilian employees, with the exception of critical workers, such as firefighters and security, will be furloughed until an agreement is reached.

Scott Bassett, a public affairs officer, is among the civilian employees facing unpaid leave.

"I don't think we'll find out until Tuesday morning," he said. "We'll either go to work or go home. We're hoping the elected officials come to a decision."

In the Southern District of the U.S. District Court for Georgia, Chief Deputy Clerk Bob Fritts said courts have enough money available to continue operating for one week into a possible partial government shutdown. If Congress fails to adopt a resolution to continue operations on a temporary basis or to adopt a budget for fiscal 2014 that begins Tuesday, other measures would have to be taken, he said.

The Southern District includes courthouses in Brunswick, Augusta, Dublin, Savannah, Waycross and Statesboro.

In a speech on the Senate floor Thursday, Sen. Saxby Chambliss, R-Ga., chastised his fellow senators for handling funding in a way that causes shutdowns, saying it "is a bad deal for the American people."

"It's a deal we have gone through for the last four years now," Chambliss said. "Congress should be passing appropriation bills in regular order, instead of waiting until the 11th hour. This only creates uncertainty in the financial market and hampers economic recovery."

The last government shutdown in late 1995 fostered distrust in the government, Chambliss said, and harmed the economy.

Chambliss and Sen. Johnny Isakson, R-Ga., have continuously opposed the Affordable Care Act, and voted against a Senate resolution to continue funding government operations through Nov. 15 that passed Friday on straight party lines, 54-44. That resolution, absent any mention of the Affordable Care Act, was then sent to the House for a vote.

There is where the trouble started, when the Republican-controlled House, to which the Constitution gives authority to initiate all spending bills, adopted a spending resolution to continue funding government operations, and tacked on a provision to defund the health care law and sent it to the Democrat-controlled Senate.

"I strongly oppose Obamacare, and since it became law, I have cast nearly 60 votes to defund, dismantle and repeal it," Isakson said. "Democrats designed Obamacare in a way that allows its funding to continue even if the rest of the government shuts down, so the effect of a shutdown would be to allow Obamacare to go forward while hurting seniors, veterans and our military."

Chris Crawford, spokesman for U.S. Rep. Jack Kingston, R-1, said Kingston will be working this weekend to come up with an agreement to fund vital government programs while preventing the Affordable Care Act from remaining law.

"Mr. Kingston is confident an agreement will be reached to prevent a government shutdown, but believes this is a fight worth having," Crawford said in an email Friday.

Brendan Buck, a spokesman for House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, said in a statement Friday, "The House will take action that reflects the fundamental fact that Americans don't want a government shutdown and they don't want the train wreck that is Obamacare."

A Washington, D.C., spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security, which includes the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center at Brunswick, did not immediately respond Friday with comment on the effect of a government shutdown there.

-- Reporter Kelly Quimby writes about government and other local topics. Contact her at [email protected], on Facebook or at 265-8320, ext. 321. Reporter Gordon Jackson writes about Camden County and other local topics. Contact him at [email protected], on Facebook or at 265-8320, ext. 323.

___

(c)2013 The Brunswick News (Brunswick, Ga.)

Visit The Brunswick News (Brunswick, Ga.) at www.thebrunswicknews.com

Distributed by MCT Information Services