Government shutdown | Latest developments

Nearly half of Ohio’s congressional delegation say they will not accept a paycheck while the federal government is under a partial shutdown. On a conference call with Ohio reporters Tuesday, Sen. Rob Portman said he “won’t be accepting my pay during the shutdown.” Later Tuesday, Democratic Sen. Sherrod Brown announced he also will forgo his pay during the shutdown, now in its third week. Among House members, Democrat Rep. Joyce Beatty of Jefferson Township is joining GOP Reps. Anthony Gonzalez of Rocky River, Warren Davidson of Troy, Bob Latta of Bowling Green, Bob Gibbs of Lakeville, Steve Chabot of Cincinnati and Dave Joyce of Geauga County in saying they won’t accept a paycheck during the shutdown. A spokesman for Chabot said he would donate his pay to local charities. Other members will continue to receive a paycheck. Reps. Steve Stivers, R-Upper Arlington, Troy Balderson, R-Zanesville and Tim Ryan, D-Howland, confirmed they would not stop their pay.

Uncertainty over federal funding for transportation projects amid a partial government shutdown is forcing some states to delay contracts for new road and bridge work while others are preparing for that possibility. Transportation officials in Oklahoma this week announced plans to delay bids on 45 highway projects worth about $137 million. “This will affect only new projects that we haven’t [bid] yet,” Oklahoma Department of Transportation spokeswoman Terri Angier said. “Unless they reach a resolution that includes the budget and authorizes us more money to put toward the projects, we can’t add new projects.”

Routine food inspections aren’t getting done because of the partial government shutdown, but checks of the riskiest foods are expected to resume next week, the Food and Drug Administration said Wednesday. The agency said it’s working to bring back about 150 employees to inspect riskier foods such as cheese, infant formula and produce. FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb said the agency can’t make the case that “a routine inspection of a Nabisco cracker facility” is necessary during the shutdown, however.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is directing dozens of wildlife refuges to return staffers to work to make sure hunters and others have access despite the government shutdown, according to an email obtained Wednesday by The Associated Press. The partial restaffing of 38 wildlife refuges is angering wildlife groups, who accuse the Trump administration of trying to minimize the public impact of the more than 2-week-old shutdown to limit the political blowback for President Donald Trump. Trump and Democrats in Congress are locked in a dispute over Trump’s demand for billions of dollars for a wall on the southern U.S. border.

Source: Combined dispatches