Government : Shutdown: Iowans raise concerns about effects on education, food and ag programs

By Brooklyn Draisey, Cami Koons and Robin Opsahl

As a shutdown of the federal government sends shockwaves through the states, Iowa’s colleges and universities are starting to brace for an impact that may not hit right away. 

Ag advocates also said the shutdown, coming in the middle of harvest season, posed a “major concern” to farmers. In the meantime, Iowa lawmakers and party officials traded statements assigning blame for the congressional gridlock that has prevented approval of stopgap spending measures to keep the government running.

Iowa colleges, universities see future fallout

Community Colleges for Iowa Executive Director Emily Shields said higher education institutions in Iowa won’t take immediate hits in the form of layoffs or the like, but the move is leaving college officials worried about their programs, funding and getting the financial aid help students need. 

According to the U.S. Department of Education’s contingency plan for the shutdown, disbursements from Pell Grants and Federal Direct Student loans will continue without interruption, as well as Title I and IDEA grant funding. “Any new grantmaking activities” have halted with the shutdown, the plan stated, and the Office for Civil Rights is stopping all investigation or review into civil rights complaints. 

Shields called the plan “pretty positive,” but added there are still things up in the air, like cases of colleges appealing canceled funding and grants from the U.S. Department of Labor. Staffing at the federal level is also a concern, as Shields said with the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, or FAFSA, students and families starting to fill out the form who have questions might have a harder time getting them answered.

“While the payments will continue, whether there’s going to be staff to answer questions or work through issues is a big question mark,” Shields said. 

This could be even more of an issue for state universities than it could be for community colleges, Shields said, as students applying to four-year colleges tend to get their FAFSA forms filed earlier than students planning to attend community college. 

The University of Iowa Office of Student Financial Aid posted a message online Wednesday stating that student financial aid will not be affected by the shutdown, and students making payments on existing student loans should continue to do so. 

The university’s federal updates webpage stated the shutdown will impact “several aspects of the University of Iowa research enterprise,” with delays in proposal reviews and grant award announcements and harder communication with federal grant sponsors expected. 

“Rhetoric” has circled the possibility of just-awarded grants being canceled, Shields said, and the shutdown has made colleges worried that the grants they received award notices for at the end of September might not actually come through. 

Some federal rulemaking processes have also been disrupted by the shutdown, Shields said, putting meetings on workforce Pell Grant rules and new gainful employment regulations. Both of those topics will have big future impacts on colleges, she said, and “a lot of eyes” are on the meetings in the hope that decisions won’t be delayed. 

“We’re hoping a lot of the things that impact our students the most are going to continue without issue, but there are several things where we interact with the federal government where it’s sort of unclear what that might look like, and there will undoubtedly be delays,” Shields said.

Ag and food impacts expected

County-level U.S. Department of Agriculture service offices will be closed during the shutdown, according to the department’s contingency plan.

Grain inspection and various farm grading services will continue to be available during the shutdown.

Iowa Corn Growers Association President Mark Mueller said the shutdown is a “major concern” to farmers who are in the midst of harvest season.

“Although the USDA has issued guidance to keep some critical functions operational, the closure of many local Farm Service Agency offices and the suspension of crucial market and crop reports are creating significant uncertainty,” Mueller said in a statement. “The Iowa Corn Growers Association is urging a prompt resolution to preserve vital programs necessary for feeding and fueling the world.”

The USDA plan also shows that animal and plant disease testing and research will be limited to those that have emergency status, like highly pathogenic avian influenza and new world screwworm.

A spokesperson with the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship said the department is still gathering “operational guidance” from its federal partners.

Iowa State Climatologist Justin Glisan said in an episode of Iowa Press, that he and other state climatologists would step in during the shutdown to help with the National Weather Service.

The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program has funding for the month of October and benefits should not be disrupted by the shutdown for the month. SNAP could explore contingency funding options if the shutdown persists into November.

The Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children, or WIC, does not have dedicated funding for October, but it can pull from unspent funds from past grant funding. According to the National WIC Association, the program has enough funds to run for one to two weeks.

Impact on federally funded Iowa workers unclear as Democrats, GOP debate responsibility

The employment status of Iowa public workers who are funded through federal dollars is unclear. The governor’s office and the Iowa Department of Administrative Services did not respond to requests for comment on whether Iowa would pursue furloughs for state employees in positions that are partially or fully funded through federal money during the shutdown – a response that other states, like Arkansas, have prepared for as the shutdown approached.

According to the U.S. Office of Personnel Management, there were 9,930 federal civilian employees in Iowa at the end of September 2024. This figure excludes employees in departments and agencies such as the U.S. Postal Service, as well as staff in the legislative and judicial branches.

In a speech on the Senate floor Tuesday, U.S. Sen. Joni Ernst criticized Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and Democrats for allowing a shutdown to occur. Ernst said she was awarding Schumer the title of “non-essential government employee of the year” in 2025 for his “rudderless leadership, his petty partisanship, and his silly shut down shenanigans,” which she said will lead to thousands of federal employees being furloughed.

Ernst obtained a copy of a Congressional Budget Office report that found 750,000 federal employees are likely to be furloughed Wednesday.

“Instead of paying these bureaucrats for not working, the Trump administration may eliminate many of these non-essential positions altogether,” Ernst said. “Of course, our brave men and women in uniform will continue answering the call to duty without pay if there is a shutdown, as will other essential employees. But you know who will still get paid? The politicians who failed to do their jobs and caused the shutdown, namely Senator Schumer and the Democrats in Congress.”

All four of Iowa’s Republican representatives said they will forgo pay if the federal government shuts down. Most members of Congress receive a $174,000 annual salary, with the last paycheck issued on the final day of the month – in this case, Sept. 30.

Iowa’s all-GOP federal delegation has responded to the shutdown with calls for Democrats to end the shutdown by conceding on points like extending the Affordable Care Act premium tax credits. But Democrats, including candidates running against Iowa’s GOP incumbents, said the Republicans’ refusal to negotiate on ACA premium tax credits will lead to increased health care costs for Iowans.

Iowa Democratic Party Chair Rita Hart said U.S. Reps. Ashley Hinson, Mariannette Miller-Meeks, Zach Nunn and Randy Feenstra voted for a “bad spending bill that includes the largest price hike of health insurance premiums in 15 years” and had “fled” Washington.

“Republicans are the party in power,” Hart said in a statement. “It is their job to negotiate with the minority party in order to pass bipartisan legislation and keep the government open. Why aren’t Iowa’s representatives in D.C. working to fix this? And why aren’t they standing up for Iowans?”

But Republicans have responded by saying Democrats are responsible for the shutdown, with the National Republican Congressional Committee launching a paid advertising campaign supporting the Iowa Republicans. The narrator in the ad states Democrats pursued a shutdown “in order to give illegal immigrants free health care,” and should be held responsible for the shutdown’s impacts on military troops, police and Border Control paychecks, as well as on funding going to farmers, veterans and disaster relief.

“While Democrats shut down our government to bankroll handouts for illegal immigrants and appease their radical base, Mariannette Miller-Meeks, Zach Nunn, and Republicans are focused on keeping the government working for Iowans,” NRCC Spokeswoman Emily Tuttle said in a statement. “The contrast couldn’t be clearer, and Iowans know they have a fighter with Mariannette Miller-Meeks and Zach Nunn.”

There are also certain services provided through federal funding in Iowa that advocates  say will be impacted. The United Way of Central Iowa called for Iowans to use the number 211 for help in accessing support that is usually provided through federal services and assistance programs that will be paused during the shutdown.

“This moment calls for a united response, and we’re here to provide the guidance and resources our community can count on,” Mary Sellers, president of United Way of Central Iowa said in a statement.