Fort site prepares for shutdown

Employees at the Fort Scott National Historic Site went home Monday unsure if when they returned today, they would be sent home, or go to work as usual.

The status of the Fort was up in the air Monday afternoon as lawmakers in Washington, D.C., continued to jockey over legislation that would shut the federal government down.

"We're just like every other unit in the National Parks Service," said Betty Boyko, FSNHS superintendent. "We're preparing for the shut down."

Employees were to report to work today, but if there were not enough appropriations, Boyko said staff would begin the process of shutting down all the facilities.

"Even the visitors on site will be asked to leave," Boyko said.

There is one person who is designated the "acceptable employee," who will provide security for the grounds to prevent vandalism, ensure there are no problems at the facility, and provide overall law enforcement during the furlough, Boyko said.

While The Friends of the Fort organization assists the site in many activities, this is not a time when volunteers will be allowed to help, Boyko said.

"That question has come up in many of the national parks units -- if the employees could volunteer or if other organizations could," Boyko said. "Again, the answer to that is, 'no' simply because even to keep a facility open is expending funds without an appropriation. That's how we operate -- on annual appropriations."

While the buildings will be closed, electricity and water will not be shut off, Boyko said.

The shutdown comes after the FSNHS already has held most of its larger events.

"We just had most of our big special events in September," Boyko said. "This is the time of year when we begin to plan our candlelight tour, so that will be put on hold."

FSNHS is in a better position than other parks. Boyko also assists Fort Larned National Historic Site at Larned, which has its candlelight tour scheduled on Oct. 12.

"At this point, if we don't have appropriations, we'll have to cancel that," she said. "I think that's what a lot of parks are doing, looking at what type of activities are planned and then they will have to cancel those."

FSHNS spent much of Monday preparing for a shutdown. Today, if the site is closed, Boyko said instructions would come from the Midwest Regional Office in Omaha, Neb., which is the liaison between FSNHS and the National Parks office in Washington, D.C. In the event of a shutdown, three employees will remain on staff in Omaha, Boyko said. One is the public relations staff member, who will ensure information is disseminated as it is received. Another is a contract person in case a system goes down. That person will be able to make emergency purchases. The third person will serve as a law enforcement officer.

This isn't the first time some FSNHS staff members have gone through the threat of a government shutdown. Boyko said they went through the preparations in 2011, but a shutdown never occurred.

"Some of us were involved in a shutdown in 1995, when the government was shut down for three weeks," Boyko said. "So some of the employees have been through this. For other employees, this is something completely new and of course every (shut down) is a little different, but the preparation is the same."

She said in the past week, they have "dusted off" the shutdown plans to see what the process entails. One of of the steps is communicating with employees, who are given a verbal notice that they may be placed on furlough.

"In the past, employees have been compensated, but there's never a guarantee of that," Boyko said. "So you try to prepare your employees for that."

Employees are then informed to report for work, and if a shutdown occurs, the payroll is prepared for the time the employees have worked. Signs which will be posted on buildings and telephone messages have to be prepared and computer systems must be shut down.

Employees will also receive a written furlough notice, which they have to sign.

"We're hopeful that this isn't going to happen," Boyko said.