The first Congressional hearing focused on the Sept. 16 shooting at the Washington Navy Yard has been postponed indefinitely because of the government shutdown.
The hearing on Tuesday of the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Government Affairs was to examine how the government grants clearance and conducts background checks, after a Navy contractor with a history of errant behavior killed 12 people at the complex.
Emily Spain, a spokeswoman for Senator Tom Carper of Delaware, the committee chairman, said it had not been rescheduled and warned of possible future postponements and cancellations.
“We’ll be noticing – and potentially postponing – other hearings on a case-by-case basis moving forward until the shutdown situation is resolved,” she said.
Other panels planned to move ahead with hearings scheduled for Tuesday.
The House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform is hearing testimony from officials at the Environmental Protection Agency about the case of John Beale. He pleaded guilty on Friday to “stealing nearly $900,000 from the agency over 13 years by failing to show up for work while falsely claiming to be working for the C.I.A. and for filing bogus expenses,” according to The Associated Press.
The Senate Committee on Banking will look at the market for private-label mortgage-backed securities, while the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources will focus on the Transboundary Hydrocarbons Agreement with Mexico.
Democrats also planned to move ahead with events focused on the Affordable Care Act on Tuesday, as states open enrollment in health exchanges created under the law.