TULSA, Okla — The government shutdown has gone on for more than 10 days, and companies are starting to notice a shift.
Cassie Pound is the vice president of Quality Heat and Air, which does heating, A/C, plumbing, and electrical work.
WATCH: GOVERNMENT SHUTDOWN IMPACT: Local businesses worried about future changes:
She says uncertainty surrounding the government shutdown has quickly become one of her company's most significant obstacles.
“The longer we go on, the more unknown questions continue to arise," she said. “One thing that does kind of stick out is just customers feeling anxious, maybe holding off on repairs to their home because they're not sure what's happening.”
She said she has also seen a change in financing approvals, which is known to occur when federal oversight is decreased, potentially leading to fewer customers.
“ A large portion of our customers, we finance them," she said. "Suddenly, in the last, you know, 10 days or so, we've started seeing declines that wouldn't typically be declined.”
Ultimately, she said the biggest thing that could be affected because of everything that's going on is her workers.
“If companies aren't selling things, then that affects jobs dramatically," she said.
But it isn't the only thing the shutdown could affect if it is prolonged.
“If the shutdown continues, we're going to start seeing some, some capital issues with some businesses that are working with federal companies or having big contracts that are waiting on payment," she said. "Seeing, you know, like pipeline of like materials coming in and those types of things.”
Pound said overall, she understands why people would feel uneasy about the future.
“When we look at tariffs and we now look at the government shutdown, we look at what we've gone through in the last five years, we look at all of the changes that have happened, we look at COVID," she said. "You look at all of that as a big picture. It really sets an uneasy tone for homeowners and for employees, like, what else is to come, what blow is next, and how is that going to affect us to continue to survive?”
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