The 2025 U.S. Federal Government Shutdown: Lessons from Public Library Responses to Help Communities in Financial Crisis

In 2025, the United States experienced the longest full federal government shutdown in history. Over a million federal workers did not receive paychecks, and millions of low-income households faced the threat of missing benefits checks. In areas with high concentrations of federal workers or low-income households, the shutdown represented a community-level crisis. This study provides a systematic exploration of how public libraries responded and emphasizes the need for public libraries to consider economic-political risks relevant to their local communities. The study positions these efforts within the literature on library disaster/crisis preparedness and concludes with recommendations for improving responses in future.