KSHB 41 reporter Rachel Henderson covers neighborhoods in Wyandotte and Leavenworth counties. Share your story idea with Rachel. She has been following one woman's challenge to pay her bills during the government shutdown. The woman works for the Social Security Administration and is not getting paid during the shutdown.
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A Kansas City-based federal worker is struggling to make ends meet during the government shutdown.
Inez Nicholson is required to show up to work at the Social Security Administration, but she’s not getting paid.
There are almost 30,000 federal employees in Kansas City.
"I still go in knowing that someone still needs my help, and if I can help someone else, that's what I'm going to do," Nicholson said.
Nicholson is one of 1.4 million federal employees not getting paid during one of the longest government shutdowns in history.
“Does anyone understand what this government shutdown impact has on anyone,” she asked. “It's not just me.”
She shared a letter from the Social Security Administration that she sent to her creditors, including her leasing office at Polo Run Apartments in Kansas City, Missouri.
The letter explains her situation due to the government shutdown and asks creditors for financial assistance whether it’s postponing, reducing or rescheduling payments.
Despite this communication, her leasing office left several late fee notices on her door throughout the month. A new late fee notice appeared after I visited her apartment Friday.
According to Nicholson's landlord-tenant agreement, “In the event that rent is not paid in full by the 3rd day of the month in which it becomes due, the amount of such rent for that month shall increase by $50.00 plus $5.00 per day thereafter continuing through the last day of said month or such earlier time as Tenant’s rental account is paid in full.
When Nicholson was first alerted about her overdue rent, she says paid half of the balance because that's all she had.
She and her property managers exchanged emails after she shared the SSA letter with them.
In one of the emails, her leasing office responded: "Thank you for the update and for keeping us informed about your situation. We completely understand the challenges caused by the government shutdown. Unfortunately, we're not able to hold any accounts past the 10th of the month without at least half of the balance paid."
When I stopped by the leasing office to ask questions, they refused to comment.
Nicholson says her property management told her she risks an eviction notice if she can't pay off her balance by November 1.
"Here we're coming up on November, you have rent due again, you have your lights, gas, water, cell phones, car insurance. Everything comes due," she said. "Where is this funding going to come from to pay the bills?"
When I asked her if she’s prepared to leave, she responded, "If I have to, I will. Where I would go at this point, I don't know.”
Nicholson has called several agencies for help, including the United Way and Catholic Charities.
"I've called agencies. They're out of funds," she said. "If we're required to be at work, we don't have the time to go to food pantries."
Despite the mounting pressure, Nicholson maintains her commitment to helping others.
"I can't cry over spilled milk when I'm still required to go into work and I'm not getting paid," she said. "All you can do is just pray and get through it. It is what it is honestly."
I made similar calls to surrounding agencies to see what the demand is like for assistance.
"Any time that we see these economic conditions changing, we're likely to see an increase in those calls," said Kera Mashek, the senior director of communications for United Way of Greater Kansas City.
Mashek says they've gotten over 200 requests linked to the government shutdown and furloughed workers.
The organization has also seen an increase in their 2-1-1 resource and referral line.
Layoffs at surrounding auto plants have also added to the increase of calls.
The agency compared numbers from October 2024 to October 2025 and found they saw 900 additional requests for people looking for assistance with water bills, 137 more calls related to shelter needs, 380 additional calls for legal aid, including eviction prevention. Food assistance has gone up 16% since last month before the SNAP delays started.
Many of the agencies they refer people to are out of funds, something Nicholson says she’s encountered.
When someone calls and says funds aren't available at an agency, United Way updates its resource list so it's current and they don't refer someone else there.
"We know that when we have situations like this, every food pantry in town, every organization that provides rental assistance and utility assistance is being hit extremely hard," Mashek said. "We know it can be frustrating that especially right now when a lot of these resources are being really, really hit hard that there's just not enough to go around for everyone."
United Way launched its SNAP Into Action campaign Wednesday to help SNAP recipients.
The 2-1-1 line can also connect people to mental health resources since economic hardships can be distressing.
Mashek knows of people recently impacted who took their own life.
"Unfortunately, a lot of times when we go through these really challenging economic times, it can also be emotionally taxing on people," she said. "It's heartbreaking. We never want people to be in a situation where they are scrambling for resources and trying to figure out how they're going to put food on the table for their family and put electricity on and put a roof over their heads."
Mashek also put out a call to action to people with the means to help others.
"For those folks in our community who have the ability to give and be generous, this is the time," Mashek said.
For now, Nicholson is trying to hang in there.
"Eventually, you gotta face reality. This is getting bad," she said.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
