Government Shutdown

Businesses and nonprofit organizations throughout Oklahoma are offering help to federal government employees affected by the government shutdown. Discounts on food and entertainment are available to furloughed federal employees in Tulsa and Oklahoma City. Help with living expenses is also available. For more information, please contact these organizations directly.

Food & Utilities

 For more information on assistance with food and utilities, search Oklahoma 211, or visit the Food Help, Food Pantries, and Free Meals page on our website.

• Apple Barrel Cafe 
  Apple Barrel Cafe is offering free meals to furloughed federal employees on Monday nights at its 61st and Mingo location. For more information, see this Tulsa World article, or call (918) 505-5951.
• Community Food Bank of Eastern Oklahoma 
  The Community Food Bank of Eastern Oklahoma is offering a pop-up market to furloughed federal employees. For more information, see this Tulsa World article, or call (918) 585-2800.
• Oklahoma Baptist Disaster Relief 
  Oklahoma Baptist Disaster Relief is providing free meals to employees of the Federal Transfer Center. For more information, see this article, or submit an inquiry online. 
• Regional Food Bank of Oklahoma 
  Regional Food Bank of Oklahoma is offering food assistance to furloughed federal employees. For more information, call (405) 972-1111. 
• Tulsa Area United Way 
  Tulsa Area United Way is working with agencies across the Tulsa region to provide assistance to furloughed federal employees. For more information, visit their website.

Loans

Banks around the U.S. are offering assistance to federal employees, and some Oklahoma banks are offering relief from overdraft fees.  For information about national banks offering assistance to federal employees, see this Forbes article and this USA Today article.

• Regent Bank 
  Regent Bank is offering zero percent loans with no fees to all furloughed federal employees. For more information, call (877) 488-4790. 

Medical & Dental

• Magnolia Family Dental Care 
  Magnolia Family Dental Care is offering free emergency dental services to furloughed federal employees. For more information, see this Fox 23 News article, or call (918) 492-3771.

Pet Care

• Woodland West Animal Hospital 
  Woodland West Animal Hospital is offering free initial exams and deferred payment arrangements to furloughed federal employees. For more information, see this News on 6 article, or contact Woodland West Animal Hospital at (918) 299-1208.    
• Pet Angels Rescue 
  Pet Angels Rescue in Guthrie is offering pet food assistance to furloughed federal employees. For more information, see this News on 4 article, or text Pet Angels Rescue at (405) 413-2895. 

Temporary Employment Opportunities

• Broken Arrow Public Schools: Substitute Teaching Opportunities 
  Broken Arrow Public Schools is waiving its substitute workshop fee for furloughed federal employees. For more information, see this KRMG article, or call (918) 259-7744.
• Tulsa Public Schools: Substitute Teaching Opportunities 
  Tulsa Public Schools is offering substitute teaching opportunities to furloughed federal employees. For more information, see this News on 6 article, or contact TPS Talent Management at (918) 746-6310. 

General Information

The Office of Personnel Management and the Department of State include detailed information on their websites about how federal employees can expect to be impacted by the government shutdown. For additional information, see this article from the National Active and Retired Federal Employees Association.

• OPM Furlough Guidance 
  Visit the Office of Personnel Management's site for information about pay & leave for federal employees. 
• Furloughed Employees Handbook 
  The Department of State's Furloughed Employees Handbook includes detailed information about how federal employees will be affected by the government shutdown.  

Unemployment Benefits

Federal employees who have been affected by the government shutdown may file for unemployment benefits. For more information, see this Federal News Network article. 

• Oklahoma Employment Security Commission: Unemployment Benefits 
  Visit the Oklahoma Employment Security Commission's website to file for unemployment benefits.

Visit the Professional Services Council Government Shutdown Resource Center for an overview on how the government shutdown will impact government contractors.

The following articles contain more information on this topic:

• A contractor’s guide to surviving a government shutdown
• Unemployment insurance and the government shutdown: what federal workers and contractors need to know
• Government contractors may not get paid back after the shutdown is over

The following articles and reports explain why government shutdowns happen, what they mean, and their likely impacts:

• Shutdown of the federal government: causes, processes, and effects
• Everything you need to know about the government shutdown
• Federal funding gaps: a brief overview
• Q&A: everything you should know about government shutdowns

The following articles and press releases explain which services will be affected during the government shutdown:

General

• How the government shutdown could affect you
• What’s open — and closed — during a partial government shutdown
• The data casualties of the federal government shutdown

Taxes

• IRS confirms tax filing season to begin January 28

WIC & Nutrition

• USDA services in the event of a government shutdown (SNAP/WIC)
• Oklahoma WIC program funded through February 

Housing

• Oklahoma Housing Finance Agency government shutdown information
  (Section 8)