Nevada Slammed by Federal Shutdowns: $2.4 Billion Lost in 2025, $44 Million in 2019

Another government shutdown continues, now in its fourth week, stemming from Senate Democrats’ refusal to support funding as a way to gain leverage. This one is a partial shutdown of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), with Democrats demanding oversight reforms for immigration agencies like Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Customs and Border Protection (CPB).

Nevada's two Democratic U.S. Senators, Catherine Cortez Masto and Jacky Rosen, have been vocal critics of the Trump administration's immigration policies and have supported the push for reforms during the current shutdown. Their statements on opposing DHS funding align with broader Democratic efforts to tie appropriations to accountability measures for immigration enforcement agencies.

This impasse follows a brief government-wide partial shutdown in early February 2026, over similar immigration policy disputes, as well as a longer federal government shutdown in fall 2025 that disrupted Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits for millions of Americans nationwide and nearly 495,000 Nevadans.

Federal government shutdowns hit Nevada particularly hard due to its reliance on federal workers, contracts, tourism near national sites, and assistance programs. The fall 2025 shutdown was projected by the White House Council of Economic Advisers to cost the state about $140 million in lost Gross State Product per week, accumulating to roughly $2.4 billion in total economic output losses over its duration, with additional monthly impacts including delays in $39 million in small business loans and $105 million in federal contract spending. The 2018–2019 shutdown cost Nevada an estimated $44 million in total economic losses. The ongoing partial DHS shutdown in 2026, though narrower in scope with most essential functions continuing, is still expected to strain Nevada’s tourism, travel, and federal worker pay.

During the most costly and prolonged fall 2025 federal government shutdown, Sen. Cortez Masto (D) consistently voted with Republicans to reopen the government, prioritizing the severe economic harm to Nevadans from disruptions such as paused SNAP benefits and tourism impacts. Sen. Rosen (D), however, voted against funding measures for several months in alignment with Senate Democratic leadership, holding firm until the prolonged impasse finally forced her to capitulate and join her colleague in voting to end the shutdown and reopen the government.