How to Survive a Furlough or Government Shutdown

Given the recent deliberations in DC and the hundreds of thousands of federal employees who dealt with employment uncertainty, I thought it would be helpful to create a convenient reference guide for steps that should be taken in the event of a furlough. They are categorized by topic below. As always, if one or more of these items affects you and is causing concern or you have a question, feel free to contact us.

Furlough Status
On the home page of the Office of Personnel Management’s website (www.opm.gov) is a link that is titled Furlough Guidance. This explanation may be helpful to determine your status and what options you have until there is clarity. There are two types of furlough: administrative and emergency. Under administrative at the site there is a 64 page guide describing a variety of scenarios you may find yourself in and providing helpful information. This site also provides points of contact, in addition to your normal human resources office, for more information. They are:

Documentation of Furlough Actions     202-606-4415     persdoc@opm.gov
Furloughing SES Appointees               202-606-8049     sespolicy@opm.gov
Labor Relations                                    202-606-2930     plr@opm.gov
Pay and Leave                                     202-606-2858     pay-leave-policy@opm.gov
RIF, Details, and Outside Employment 202-606-0960     employ@opm.gov

If you do not know to which department your question applies I would not recommend copying multiple email addresses here as it may cause confusion. I would send one email at a time to each department and await a response as to whether you are in the correct place.

Unemployment
While on Furlough you may qualify for unemployment benefits under the Unemployment Compensation for Federal Employees (UCFE) program. To qualify requires sufficient wages in the prior 12 to 18 months and is administered by the state in which you are employed. Here is the link to Maryland’s program: http://www.servicelocator.org/OWS_Select_Link.asp?state=24

Emergency Reserve & Cash Flow
If you experience any period of time where employment income is not coming in when it usually would it is important to inventory your sources of cash to maintain your household functionality. Generally it is a goal among households to establish an emergency reserve for such situations and this would be an example of such a scenario where these funds could be used first. If and when you are compensated for the time in which there was no income, it could be replenished then. If a bank emergency reserve is not an option then there are items like non-IRA investments. When selling these assets there may be capital gains consequences so see a tax advisor and wealth advisor. Credit card limits and lines of credit on a house are also sources. Between these two, a line of credit on your residence will generally have a lower interest rate and more flexibility. However, it is vital to pay it back as quickly as possible to maintain good cash flow toward your goals.

Life, Health & Other Insurance
FEGLI life insurance, health, dental, vision and other ongoing payments were most likely coming out of your paychecks prior to the government shutdown. Any disruption on the payments for this insurance coverage can cause headaches to get them up and running again. And in a worst case scenario could cause a lapse in coverage. To check on these benefits it is best to contact the agency where you are normally employed, according to OPM. Here is a link to determine the contact at each agency:http://apps.opm.gov/abo/

Below is a breakdown per insurance coverage:
Life Insurance (FEGLI)           202-606-1413     fegli@opm.gov
Health Insurance                    202-606-1000     fehb@opm.gov
Long Term Care Insurance    202-606-1413     ltc@opm.gov
Dental & Vision                      202-606-1413      fedvip@opm.gov

Household Planning
This is an opportunity to take care of some items for which you have not had time; i.e. fixing up the house, organizing your home office, seeing family, doctor’s appointments, and retirement planning, and so on. Take advantage of the time. It will keep your mind off matters in Congress and you will feel more comfortable when you can get back to work, as undoubtedly there will be quite a bit of catching up to do when you do.

What else you can do
Contact your congressman and senator! If you haven’t already done so I would make the following links favorites on your computer so you can stay in touch with those individuals representing you in your district. You have a house member and 2 senate members. Tell them how you feel about all of this. Even if they aren’t reading every one closely that arrives from all of their constituents you will still feel better for having sent it.  In the House website it helps if you know the extra 4 digits of your zip code, or just use the full address search function.

U.S. House of Representatives: http://www.house.gov/representatives/find/
U.S. Senate: http://www.senate.gov/ – search bar is in the top right corner and you only have to enter your state.

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Securities offered through Triad Advisors, Member FINRA / SIPC.  Advisory Services offered through Planning Solutions Group, LLC.  Planning Solutions Group, LLC is not affiliated with Triad Advisors.  PSG Clarity is a division of Planning Solutions Group, LLC.