Penutupan pemerintahan federal mengakibatkan banyak [[karyawan federal]] sipil yang menjalani [[furlough]] (cuti wajib tanpa gaji). Personel militer dan karyawan-karyawan penting tidak disertakan dalam furlough, namun gajinya bisa jadi tidak dibayarkan sesuai jadwal.<ref>[http://money.cnn.com/2011/04/06/news/economy/federal_workers_shutdown/index.htm Shutdown: 800,000 federal workers in the dark] – 2011 Cable News Network</ref><ref>[http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704013604576246612535953974.html "Government Prepares for Shutdown"]. ''[[The Wall Street Journal]]'.</ref>
Rincian pasti seputar fungsi-fungsi pemerintah yang berhenti beroperasi selama penutupan ditentukan oleh [[Office of Management and Budget]].<ref name="washingtonpost1">{{cite news |first=Ed |last=O'Keefe |title=Government shutdown: Frequently asked questions |url=http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/frequently-asked-questions-about-a-government-shutdown/2011/04/01/AF4WPIQC_story.html |newspaper= [[The Washington Post]] |date=April 2, 2011 }}</ref> Akan tetapi, beberapa aspek tertentu telah diterapkan di semua penutupan pemerintahan sebelumnya. Salah satunya adalah penutupan taman nasional dan kantor paspor.<ref>{{cite news |first=Danielle |last=Belopotosky |title=What a Government Shutdown Means for Travelers |url=http://intransit.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/04/08/what-a-government-shutdown-means-for-travelers/ |newspaper= [[The New York Times]] |date=April 8, 2011 }}</ref> "Personel darurat" masih dipekerjakan, termasuk militer, penegak hukum federal, dokter dan perawat yang bekerja di rumah sakit federal, dan pengawas lalu lintas utara.<ref name="washingtonpost1"/> Anggota Kongres masih digaji karena gaji mereka tidak dapat diubah kecuali melalui hukum langsung.<ref>{{cite news |first=Michael |last=Shear |title=Will Members of Congress Get Paid in a Shutdown? |url=http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/04/07/will-members-of-congress-get-paid-in-a-shutdown/ |newspaper= [[The New York Times]] |date=April 7, 2011 }}</ref> Pengiriman surat tidak terkena dampaknya karena anggarannya swasta.<ref>{{cite news |first=Emi |last=Kolawole |title=Government shutdown 2011: Will I get paid? What will be open? What can I expect? |url=http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/federal-eye/post/government-shutdown-2011-will-i-get-paid-what-will-be-open-what-can-i-expect/2011/04/06/AFfMK2oC_blog.html?hpid=z2#maill |newspaper= [[The Washington Post]] |date=April 8, 2011 }}</ref>
Penutupan pemerintahan sebelumnya juga memengaruhi [[pemerintah D.C.|pemerintah kotamadya Washington, D.C.]] melalui penutupan sekolah dan penundaan prasarana umum seperti pengumpulan sampah.<ref>{{cite news |first=Justin |last=Jouvenal |title=Government shutdown could prove smelly for D.C. |url=http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/government-shutdown-could-prove-smelly-for-dc/2011/04/08/AFJBny2C_story.html |newspaper= [[The Washington Post]] |date=April 8, 2011 }}</ref>
