WARREN, Pa. — The federal government is fully funded through Friday, Feb. 15.

What happens after that is anyone’s guess.

In Warren County, Pa., the most recent shutdown — our nation’s longest — impacted the U.S. Forest Service most heavily.

Acting Public Affairs Officer Collin Shephard said last week that “approximately 135 full-time employees work on the Allegheny National Forest.”

The shutdown plan for the Forest Service breaks staff down to three categories that continued to work during the recent partial shutdown and a fourth that will be furloughed.

“An individual employee’s status could – and many did – change throughout the partial shutdown,” Shephard added.

The ANF provided a breakdown of how many employees fell into what category in the most recent shutdown.

Exempt employees are those “not affected by a lapse in appropriations” and “includes employees who are not funded by annually appropriated funds.”

“Exempted employees worked some or all of their normal schedule and were paid during the partial shutdown,” Shephard said. “At the beginning of the partial shutdown, none of the Allegheny National Forest’s employees held this status; however, beginning on January 22, 43 employees held an exempted status.”

Excepted employees “normally will work some or all of their normal tour of duty during a furlough. This usually includes emergency employees such as law enforcement as well as other employees designated as mission essential. Excepted employees who work during the furlough will eventually be paid when Congresses passes an appropriation bill,” according to the shutdown plan. Other employees are categorized as excepted but placed in “on-call status.”

“Excepted and excepted on-call employees worked some or all of their normal schedule and were not paid during the partial shutdown,” Shephard explained. “At the beginning of the partial shutdown, 38 employees held an excepted or excepted on-call status. By the end of the partial shutdown, 23 employees held this status.”

The shutdown plan states that employees “who are neither excepted nor exempt… are barred from working during a shutdown, except to perform minimal activities as necessary to execute an orderly suspension of agency operations related to non-excepted activities. These employees will be furloughed.”

Shephard said 91 were furloughed at the beginning of the partial shutdown. “By the end of the partial shutdown, 63 employees held this status.”

The plan outlines that excepted services include those “essential to protect life and property” and include, among other positions, fire suppression and law enforcement.

This category also includes “protection of Research studies where lack of continuation measurements or maintenance would destroy or endanger validity of research findings.”