Gov. Kim Reynolds spoke with reporters after a roundtable meeting with state lawmakers and community members at the Roy R. Estle Memorial Library in Dallas Center Oct. 16, 2025. (Photo by Robin Opsahl/Iowa Capital Dispatch)
Gov. Kim Reynolds said Tuesday more than 700 state employees and 700 Iowa National Guard members are not receiving pay due to the federal government shutdown.
The governor answered questions on the shutdown at a news conference about the release of the Iowa DOGE task force report. News came Monday that Iowa Workforce Development furloughed 67 employees as a result of the shutdown, and some union leaders have called for the state to access emergency aid to pay for these impacted staff members’ salaries.
Some of these employees have been completely furloughed while others are working two days a week, Reynolds confirmed, and stated IWD Director Beth Townsend has said the department does not anticipate impacts to processing unemployment claims or issuing unemployment payments. But she said she did not have an answer on whether there would be back pay provided for the furloughed workers when an agreement is reached in Congress to reopen the government.
“We’ll have to see what they end up doing at the federal level,” Reynolds said. “But again, if they would pass a clean (continuing resolution), then they could sit down at the table and they could start to work on the different appropriations, and get the government funded.”
The 67 IWD workers are part of a group of roughly 700 employees across Iowa state government agencies whose pay is affected by the shutdown, Reynolds said.
Tuesday was day 21 of an impasse in Congress over federal spending, set to become the second-longest federal shutdown in the country’s history. While the House passed a continuing resolution to provide funding for the federal government through Nov. 21, Senate Democrats have blocked the stopgap measure from passing if the extension of enhanced Affordable Care Act tax credits, set to expire at the end of the year, are not included.
Democrats and some health care advocates have said allowing these ACA tax credits to expire will cause health care premiums to skyrocket for tens of thousands of Iowans. But several Republicans have said they are only willing to have a discussion on the issue after a temporary funding measure passes.
As the shutdown continues, programs like the Supplemental Nutritional Assistance Program (SNAP), Medicare and Medicaid are also expected to see impacts. A letter sent by Iowa’s all-GOP House delegation Monday to Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer estimated 276,000 Iowans who receive SNAP benefits and 680,000 Iowa Medicare beneficiaries who use telehealth services could face problems if the shutdown continues into November.
When asked if the state can sustain benefits, Reynolds answered, “if the Democrats would pass a clean CR, we wouldn’t even be having this conversation.” She said during former President Joe Biden’s time in office, Republicans voted 13 times to keep the government open, and called for Democrats to do the same under President Donald Trump’s leadership.
“The games that they’re playing at the expense of Iowans and families of low-income Iowans that need those resources are sad,” Reynolds said. “It’s a sad scenario. They have nothing else. They need to come to the table, and they need to get this passed.”
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