Clinton-era 21-day government shutdown ends with military pay intact due to prior DOD appropriations

The second and longer Clinton-Gingrich government shutdown ended after 21 days on January 6, 1996, having furloughed 284,000 federal workers. Military personnel continued receiving pay throughout both 1995-96 shutdowns because Congress had already enacted a separate Department of Defense appropriations bill before the broader funding lapse began. The episode demonstrated how the sequencing of appropriations bills could determine which workers were protected.