how often has government shut down

The U.S. government has shut down 20 times since 1976 due to funding gaps, resulting in 10 actual shutdowns where government operations were affected. Since 1980, there have been 14 shutdowns. The most significant and longest shutdown lasted 35 days from December 2018 to January 2019. Shutdowns happen when Congress fails to agree on a budget or temporary funding, causing non- essential services to close until a spending plan is approved. Shutdown frequency has increased in recent decades, with multiple shutdowns during President Donald Trump's first term and the latest shutdown occurring on October 1, 2025, after about six years without one.