Impact of US federal government shutdown more than inconvenience

The most iconic image from the last big shutdown of the US federal government in 1995 was also its most misleading.

It was a sign on the door of Air and Space Museum in Washington saying, "Due to the Federal Government shutdown, the Smithsonian Institution must be closed. We regret the inconvenience."

But that shutdown, which lasted from December 16, 1995 to January 6, 1996 as Democratic president Bill Clinton battled a Republican-controlled House of Representatives, was a lot more than an inconvenience.

And it offers lessons about what Americans can expect, both in costs and reduced services, if a stalemate between Republicans in Congress and Democratic President Barack Obama leads to a shutdown today.

The 1995-96 shutdown held up passports for more than 200,000 people. It stopped stock offerings from coming to market. It blocked new admissions to the National Institutes of Health, the government's illustrious medical research facility.

And yes, national parks and museums did close. The paralysis produced millions of dollars in losses for tourist-dependent businesses. The cost to the federal government alone, according to an analysis by the Office of Management and Budget, was US$1.4 billion, most of it in back pay to laid-off workers who collected later for the inconvenience of staying home.