How much money will the United States save because of the government shutdown? Will the federal employees on furlough get back pay?

The House on Oct. 5 passed a bill that would grant furloughed workers back pay once the shutdown ends. The legislation, H.R. 3223, awaits a Senate vote.

But as a Boston Globe story published three days after the House vote points out, the retroactive pay alone will cancel out any shutdown-related savings. And, the story notes, plenty of money will likely be spent to start things up again, tacking on costs that wouldn’t have existed had operations continued.

“Government estimates put the cost of the last shutdowns, which lasted a total of 27 days in 1995 and 1996, at $1.4 billion, or $2.1 billion in today’s dollars. Most of that cost was attributed to paying back wages for furloughed employees,” reads the story.

“But there are probably going to be secondary costs, marginal in size but symbolically significant, which have yet to be estimated. They include the expense of getting the government back on its feet once the shutdown is over and paying for higher bids submitted by contractors who are hedging against future instability.”

Online: http://beta.congress.gov; www.fas.org/sgp/crs/misc/RL34680.pdf.

CPSO: Deputies will stand by as needed

When a woman is separating from her spouse and is moving her stuff out of the house, why does the Sheriff’s Office have deputies stand by for only 15 minutes to make sure nothing happens? It could take a while to move everything out.

“Until there is a court order with an itemized list provided by a judge listing which party gets what items, the Calcasieu Parish Sheriff’s Office will stand by while the person gets personal items (i.e. clothes for themself and/or children, medication, etc.) from the house,” Kim Myers, the agency’s spokeswoman, wrote in an email.

“We do not have a set amount of time for a person to retrieve their personal items but this can normally be done in around 15 minutes. However, we will stay as long as needed for them to retrieve personal items.”

Westlake ordinance addresses junk cars

Does Westlake have any restrictions for cars being parked on streets within a residential area? I’m referring to cars that are never moved and are blocking drives on a busy street.

The city has an ordinance on abandoned and junk vehicles, and residents can report violators by calling Westlake police, said Chief Michael Dickerson.

He noted that state law bars people from parking their cars in any way that blocks roads or driveways.

Online: http://cityofwestlake.com; www.legis.la.gov.

The Informer answers questions from readers each Sunday, Monday and Wednesday. It is researched and written by Andrew Perzo, an American Press staff writer. To ask a question, call 494-4098, press 5 and leave voice mail, or email informer@americanpress.com

(Associated Press)

Susan Walsh