Washington region’s economic growth takes a hard hit from shutdown

The predicted economic growth for the region of Washington D.C. is in danger of being wiped out completely.

According to Stephen Fuller, director of George Mason University’s Center for Regional Analysis, the estimated cost of the shutdown in the region is $200 million a day and could reach $1 billion a week.

These projections take into account federal payroll and federal contractor work as they affect the economy.

While he notes that the economy should pick up once workers are back on the job, he believes the financial strain has already caused significant damage.

There is no federal budget set for the upcoming year and Fuller says, “We’re going to lose a lot of jobs on this basis, especially seasonal jobs during the holiday season, so we’ll start the year much weaker than we should have.”