Guidance on Government Shutdowns

Guidance for the U of A Campus - Updated January 31, 2026

This week, the U.S. Congress has been working to pass appropriation bills that would fund the following federal agencies and programs for the remainder of FY26, which ends in September. Even though these bills passed in the U.S. House in a consolidated package, that package has been amended by the U.S. Senate, thus requiring the House to concur with the amended bill.  As a result, we are in a partial government shutdown affecting the six appropriations below as of midnight on Friday, January 30, 2026.  This shutdown is expected to be temporary as the U.S. House plans to work towards a resolution early next week.

  • Defense
  • Financial Services
  • Homeland Security
  • Labor-HHS-Education
  • State-Foreign Operations/National Security-Department of State
  • Transportation-HUD

As a result of this partial shutdown, the Office of the Provost is asking Deans, Research Associate Deans and Campus Business Officers to provide alternative funding options for employees and positions tied to active federal grants should there be a disruption in project funding, such as a stop work order. Units should document internally any adjustments to workload due to changes in position funding source. Updated funding information must be fully submitted and approved prior to the payroll processing deadline of 8:00 a.m. on February 11, 2026.

We will provide another update early next week. As we receive more information, updates will also be provided at  https://provost.uark.edu/shutdown/ and the Division of Research and Innovation intranet site at researchintranet.uark.edu. If you do not have access to the intranet site, please request access, and it will be given to you.

Additional Guidance During a Federal Government Shutdown

During a partial federal government shutdown, we ask that units follow the guidance below and monitor each agency’s contingency plans until another continuing resolution or the FY26 federal budget is passed and signed into law:

Last fall, we received the attached guidance from the UA System. While guidance from the UA System references federal work study funding, the work study awards on our campus will not be impacted by a shutdown.  We also received the attached guidance from the state to use during a federal government shutdown.   

In a government shutdown, the administration, distribution, and funding of federal grants will be impacted. During a shutdown, each agency adheres to its contingency plan, which specifies the availability of its resources. A government shutdown does not mean that the university must immediately stop work on federally funded projects unless we receive a stop work order or the agency contingency plans so require. 

Currently, the White House OMB is not updating their website with contingency plans at this time, but, instead, they are directing individual agencies to update their websites with their contingency plans.  The following agencies have updated their contingency plans below:

The following pages will also be updated with additional information as it becomes available - https://provost.uark.edu/shutdown/ and researchintranet.uark.edu. 

In line with guidance furnished from the state and federal agencies, the university has been reviewing its obligations and options with regard to its programs and employees supported with federal funds. We will take action consistent with that guidance while seeking to minimize any detrimental impact of the shutdown on university employees and operations.   

Based on the federal, state, and system guidance we have received, campus units should review their federal programs and take the following actions, with regard to any programs that are not the subject of a specific stop-work notice by the relevant funding agency. (This memorandum addresses employees who have a majority of their appointment with the Fayetteville campus, and programs administered by the campus. For guidance relating to employees with a majority of their appointment with the Division of Agriculture, or programs administered by the Division, please contact the Division for guidance).   

      1. If the program has sufficient federal funding and authorization from current or previous federal grants to fund the program or position, it may do so as long as funding remains available. See agency contingency plans listed above for specific guidance.
      1. All tenured or tenure-track faculty who receive all or a portion of their salary from affected grants, contracts, or cooperative agreements should be paid if the federal agency has provided available funding. If there is a shortfall in paying the faculty salaries, the shortfall should be paid from sources other than state funds, such as funds derived from the recovery of indirect costs from federal grants, federal cooperative agreements and contracts such as RIF or start-up support or private funds. If allowed by the federal government, the university will seek reimbursement of such funds once federal operations resume, but such reimbursement is not guaranteed. Any other arrangements will require advanced approval by the  Provost.
      1. All graduate assistants who receive all or a portion of their base pay (stipend) from affected grants, contracts, or cooperative agreements are to be treated the same as tenured or tenure-track faculty except that they may be moved to E&G sources of support if their duties are reassigned to support the teaching or student support mission if there is an assignment available. If alternative assignments are not available, units should seek guidance from the Office of the Provost.
      1. The positions for all other affected employees must be evaluated on a case-by-case basis. In some limited instances, sources of support (other than state funds) such as RIF or start-up support or private funds may be available to continue support for employees that are critical to continuation of project activities on at least a part-time basis. (Note that, to be eligible for continued insurance coverage under the university’s plan, employees must remain at least 50% appointed.) As with the situations above, the university will request reimbursement of such funds once federal operations resume, if allowed by federal government. Unfortunately, otherwise, employees affected by the shutdown will need to be furloughed.  

Even if contingency plans indicate that current federal funding will continue during the shutdown, this could shift, or an agency might issue a stop work order at any time during the shutdown. That is why it is critical for units to continue to monitor the agency contingency plans. Please have your staff continue to work on the EIB worksheet or Workday costing allocation entries to move employees to an appropriate funding source as listed above. A furlough or any change in FTE appointment will require instructions from HR. More guidance will be posted to https://provost.uark.edu/shutdown/ and researchintranet.uark.edu. 

Please note that the situation is fluid and that the short-term arrangements identified above will need to be evaluated on an ongoing basis, especially if the shutdown continues for an extended period of time. 

Thank you for your patience and cooperation during this time. The Chancellor’s and Provost’s Offices, in conjunction with the offices of the Vice Chancellor for Governmental Relations and Vice Chancellor for Research and Innovation, will continue to closely monitor the FY26 appropriations process and keep our campus community informed accordingly.

Thank you,

Indrajeet Chaubey, Ph.D.
Provost and Executive Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs
Distinguished Professor of Biological and Agricultural Engineering