(Alexandria, VA) – Today, Robyn Kehoe, Executive Director of the nonprofit Federal Employee Education and Assistance Fund (FEEA) announced the first week impact of FEEA’s Shutdown Assistance Grants program. Nearly 3,000 eligible federal employees from 49 states received micro-grants of $150 to support essentials like groceries, gas, and other basic necessities. As the federal government shutdown enters its fourth week, and following a missed full paycheck, FEEA expects a continued high volume of applications. The FEEA Board of Directors has earmarked up to $1 million for this program.

FEEA has observed some common characteristics of early micro-grant applicants.

• 75% are Excepted Service employees who still must report to their federal jobs daily.
• 60% are from DoD and DHS, with CBP, TSA, and the Defense Health Agency accounting for 55% of that total; another 30% of applicants are IRS or SSA employees.
• The top 5 states/territories – Texas, Georgia, Puerto Rico, Florida, and North Carolina – account for half of all applications; FEEA has received applications from all 50 states, DC, GU, PR, VI, and overseas.
• The average income of grant recipients is $50,000.

“At FEEA, we recognize that behind every number is a human being affected by this shutdown. Our goal with the Shutdown Assistance Grants program is to provide a measure of assistance that can be deployed rapidly and at scale, to meet the massive demands of the moment.  Federal employees are real people, with real families, bills, and obligations, just like so many fellow Americans. Our data shows that the impacts of this shutdown on the federal workforce are broad and disbursed across every part of the United States of America, not just concentrated in Washington, DC.  Federal employees are our neighbors and community members. Depriving these workers of their paychecks is leading to real financial hardship and extreme emotional distress.”

Background on FEEA’s Shutdown Assistance Grants

The Shutdown Grant application is for direct-hire, civilian federal employees who are furloughed or working in excepted status, and whose current federal salary is $59,999 or less, including any locality pay. Individuals may receive only one grant for the duration of this shutdown.

Media Briefing on FEEA Shutdown Assistance Grants

• FEEA’s Executive Director Robyn Kehoe will host a media briefing on Tuesday, October 28 at 1:00pm ET, virtually via Zoom.
• The briefing will cover FEEA’s Shutdown Assistance Grants program and share additional data on the nature and location of federal employees requesting and receiving assistance.
• Members of the press and public can RSVP here in advance.
• Members of the press are encouraged to pre-submit questions ahead of the briefing, which can be done when registering, but will also be able to do so live during the session.

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The Federal Employee Education and Assistance Fund (FEEA) has a mission to empower federal and postal employees and their families to achieve their educational, financial, and career goals as they serve the American people. FEEA was founded in 1986. Over FEEA’s nearly forty-year history, we have supported more than 60,000 families with emergency hardship loans, disaster relief grants, scholarships, tutoring, childcare subsidies, and more all across the United States and from almost every federal department and agency.