Government Shutdown

This page provides a list of resources that employees may find useful during the government shutdown. This is not an exhaustive list, but a starting point in your search. The D.C. Courts does not endorse the organizations, services, or programs referenced on this page.

State and Local Government Resources

District of Columbia

Maryland

• Comptroller of Maryland

• Anne Arundel County

• Calvert County

• Howard County

• Montgomery County

• Prince George’s County

Virginia

• Northern Virginia Regional Commission

• Alexandria

• Arlington County

• Culpeper, Prince William, and other counties

• Fairfax County

• Loudon County

General Resources

• Federal Employee Education & Assistance Fund (FEEA)

• MyFEDBenefits

• Partnership for Public Service

• Washington Council of Lawyers

• WTOPnews

Financial Resources

DC Courts furloughed employees can provide their furlough letter to their creditors during the shutdown. Excepted employees may contact Human Resources (Human.Resources [at] dccsystem.gov (Human[dot]Resources[at]dccsystem[dot]gov)) to receive a letter for this purpose.

Automotive

• Hyundai Capital: 800-523-4030

• Kia Motors Finance: 866-331-5632

• Lexus: 800-874-7050

• Toyota: 800-874-8822

Banks and Credit Unions

• American Bankers Association

• Bank of America: 844-219-0690

• Chase Bank: 1-888-356-0023

• Congressional Federal Credit Union: 800-491-2328

• FedChoice Federal Credit Union

• Federal Student Aid

• Interior Federal Credit Union: 800-914-8619

• LC Federal Credit Union

• MD/DC Credit Union Association

• M&T Bank

• Navy Federal Credit Union: 1-888-842-6328

• NIH Federal Credit Union

• PayPal: 1-877-689-1975

• Pentagon Federal Credit Union

• Senate Federal Credit Union

• SunTrust/Truist Financial Corporation

• Synchrony Bank

• Union Plus: 800-472-2005

• USAA

• U.S. Bank

• U.S. Employees Credit Union: 312-922-5310

• Wells Fargo

Grants and Federal Employee Relief Programs

• Federal Employee Education & Assistance Fund (FEEA)

• Maryland Resident Shutdown Loan Program

• Salvation Army

• Thrift Savings Plan

Housing and Rental

• OPM Sample Letters for Landlords/Lenders

Insurance

• Fidelity & Guaranty Life Insurance: 844-800-9146 or 888-513-8797

• MetLife: 1-800-GET-MET8

Mobile Providers

• AT&T

• Sprint: 1-888-211-4747

• T-Mobile: 1-877-746-0909

• Verizon: 1-866-266-1445

Unemployment Compensation

DC Courts employees (excepted and not excepted) may file for unemployment compensation in the District of Columbia. Eligibility information can be found at https://unemployment.dc.gov/. Employees will need to provide DC Courts Federal Identification Code 386 and their most recent SF-50 as a part of the application process. The employee will need access to eOPF for their SF-50, which may be accessed via the DC Courts network. Per OPM guidelines, furloughed employees are permitted to use their court-issued equipment and the DC Courts network to access their personal employee records (including eOPF) during the shutdown. Please note that all unemployment compensation will need to be paid back at the conclusion of the shutdown.

Food Assistance

• Aldi

• Bread for the City

• Capital Area Food Bank

• Catholic Charities DC

• DC Food Project

• DC Lunches for Kids

• DC Office of Disability Rights

• Feeding America

• Giant

• Lidl

• NW Community Food (DC)

• School District Meal Programs (contact your local school district)

• So Others Might Eat (SOME)

Utilities

• Baltimore Gas and Electric (BGE)

• Pepco

• WSSC Water

Annual Benefits Open Season

The Annual Benefits Open Season is an opportunity for employees to review and make changes to their benefit elections. Open Season is November 10-December 8, 2025 and will occur as scheduled even if the shutdown continues. The 2025 HR Open Season Intranet Home Page provides DC Courts-specific details and guidance, and the OPM Open Season Page has general resources, plan comparison tools, benefits brochures, and additional information. Furloughed employees are allowed to access the Courts network (including the intranet) for personnel matters, such as making an Open Season election and reviewing plan information. For questions, email benefits [at] dccsystem.gov (benefits[at]dccsystem[dot]gov).