The US government shutdown stretched past 40 days on Sunday as the Senate advanced a stopgap funding bill, leaving the Federal Communications Commission operating with just 171 of its 1,476 employees.

That represents an 88 percent furlough rate at the agency responsible for licensing spectrum, certifying equipment and reviewing telecom mergers. The FCC's skeletal crew has continued interference detection and emergency communications support, but routine business has ground to a halt since funding lapsed on October 1.

What is frozen at the FCC?

Reviews of major telecom mergers remain parked. The commission has yet to act on Charter Communications' $34.5 billion acquisition of Cox Communications, a deal that would reshape the US cable broadband market if approved.

FCC Chairman Brendan Carr said in late October that the shutdown had "slowed" license processing for network deployments and delayed approvals for consumer electronics entering the market. The commission still held its October 28 open meeting despite the funding lapse.

Without a working majority of FCC staff, the commission cannot process routine license applications, equipment authorizations or merger reviews at normal pace.

How has the FTC responded?

The Federal Trade Commission furloughed about two-thirds of its workforce, leaving roughly 400 employees in place. The agency suspended consumer services, paused antitrust investigations, stopped processing Freedom of Information Act requests and canceled all public events.

The slowdown has delayed antitrust cases involving Amazon and Meta. Attorneys have sought extensions as hearings were postponed.

Why is NTIA still paying out broadband money?

The Commerce Department's National Telecommunications and Information Administration kept its broadband programs running through the shutdown, including the $42.5 billion Broadband Equity, Access and Deployment initiative. NTIA's authority flows from the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act and does not depend on annual appropriations.

By November 3, 53 of 56 states and territories had submitted their final BEAD proposals to the agency for review.

The broader Commerce Department tells a different story. Roughly 43,000 employees remain on furlough. Most research at the National Institute of Standards and Technology has halted, pausing work on cybersecurity and artificial intelligence standards.

What about permits and standards work?

The Environmental Protection Agency is running at 11 percent staffing and has halted most permit reviews. Expedited federal environmental reviews under the FAST-41 process continue for infrastructure projects above $100 million, but most BEAD-funded builds fall below that threshold.

That mismatch leaves BEAD-funded projects waiting on routine federal permits that the depleted EPA cannot process.

Will the shutdown end this week?

Senate leaders attached the stopgap funding measure to a House-passed bill and plan a final vote once the House returns from its seven-week recess. Eight Democrats, including Sens. Jacky Rosen, D-Nev., and Dick Durbin, D-Ill., joined Republicans on the procedural motion.

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy warned that FAA capacity cuts at 40 major airports could reach 20 percent if negotiations collapse. More than 1,500 flights were canceled over the weekend, with average delays of four hours at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport and three hours at Houston Hobby.

The aviation pressure has added urgency to the funding talks, though it carries no direct role in telecom oversight. The 40-day lapse has now outlasted every previous federal funding shutdown.

If the House sends the package to President Donald Trump as expected, FCC, FTC and NIST staff could return to their desks within days — though clearing the backlog of stalled merger reviews, license applications and BEAD approvals will take months longer.