No one likes cleaning the refrigerator — all those weird coagulations of gunk and crusty debris at the bottom of a seemingly bottomless chasm in between drawers are enough to put off even the most stalwart cleaners. The Environmental Protection Agency is back to work cleaning up the world, but even it has realized it’s been avoiding a nearer cleaning task after finding a 16-year-old can of soup in a fridge at its D.C. headquarters.
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government shutdown
EPA Finds Soup Can From 1997 In Fridge (Which Means No One Stole Guy’s Lunch 16 Years Ago)
By 10.18.13
CDC Calls Back Some Furloughed Staff To Tackle Multi-State Salmonella Outbreak
By 10.9.13
On the heels of a multi-state outbreak of salmonella that has sickened hundreds, some were wondering what would happen with most of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s food-borne illness staff on furlough during the government shutdown. The CDC is now reassuring the public that it has called back many of its workers to handle the outbreak. [More]
Government Shutdown Furloughs IRS Taxpayer Advocates, Keeps Imposing Tax Levies
By 10.4.13
Earlier this week, we pointed out that just because most of the federal government is closed for business, that doesn’t mean citizens get out of our obligation to pay taxes. If what the IRS is asking you to pay is confusing or unfair, we usually recommend that readers turn to the Taxpayer Advocate Service. Those noble workers are furloughed during the shutdown. [More]
Hyundai Deferring Car Payments For U.S. Federal Employees During Gov’t Shutdown
By 10.2.13
Just because the government has the misfortune to shut down doesn’t mean all the expenses federal employees have to pay for are put on hold — far from it. Bills are still due for many affected by the shutdown, but Hyundai Motor says it wants to help any affected U.S. workers by deferring payments they owe on the car company’s vehicles. [More]
Google Doodle Marks Yosemite’s Anniversary (While Gov’t Shutdown Forces Park To Close)
By 10.1.13
So Yosemite National Park is sitting there, all majestic in the outfit it planned just for the occasion — its 123rd Anniversary, today, Oct. 1 — but something isn’t right. There are no party guests, no cake and not a celebratory banner in sight, because the federal government is shut down today. [More]
Shutdown Forces Justice Dept. To Press Pause On Attempt To Block US Airways & American Merger
By 10.1.13
It’s been more than six weeks since the Justice Dept. rained on the planned wedding between US Airways and American Airlines, and it looks like the fate of the two carriers may be further delayed by the current shutdown of the federal government. Earlier today, lawyers for the DOJ filed a motion for a stay in its lawsuit to block the merger because the shutdown is “creating difficulties for the Department to perform the functions necessary to support its litigation efforts.” [via Reuters] [More]
