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Source: Standard-Examiner, Ogden, UtahOct.迷利倉 04--OGDEN -- It's one of those rankings that -- at least in the current throws of a government shutdown -- tends to give city officials heartburn.In the entire country, the Ogden-Clearfield area is ranked as the sixth-most dependent on its federal work force.With about 24,000 people employed by the U.S. government, roughly 11.5 percent of the area's work force draws a paycheck from uncle Sam.Not particularly inspiring numbers when a certain rich uncle has suddenly decided to stop paying his employees."We like to be high in most categories," said Mark Johnson, chief administrative officer for Ogden city. "This isn't one of those."When the government shuts down, Johnson said, workers don't get pay checks. And workers who don't get pay checks tend to spend less money on consumer goods in, oh, say, Ogden."Probably 30 percent of our revenue comes from sales tax," Johnson said, "so anytime you have people not paid, that's a huge concern."Johnson said the local impact of the shutdown will depend on its duration."If it's shutdown a week, we can bide that time, but if it becomes two, three, four weeks -- that starts to be a significant impact."But Johnson says individual families may not even have that much time."Think about it. Most people live paycheck to paycheck. Whether that's good or bad, they do. All of a sudden, you don't get a paycheck or two paychecks. How much is that going to mess you up, and for how long?"Layton Mayor Steve Curtis echoes the frustration of many city officials over the shutdown.Asked by a television reporter what he would say to Utah Congressman Mike Lee if he were standing there, Curtis shot, "I'd say, 'Back off!' ""To play politics with people's lives doesn't need to transpire," he said. "The political games being played on Capitol Hill are hurting people."And it's not just the 22,000-plus civilian employees at Hill Air Force Base who are being hurt by the shutdown, either, Curtis said. If those employees aren't drawing a paycheck, they aren't spending money at local businesses.This is what economists call the multiplier effect."There are so many multiplier effects that affect an economy," said Layton Mayor Steve Curtis.Kent Andersen, economic development specialist for Layton city, said he is beginning to hear rumors of that multiplier effect."I've heard comments from businesses -- the closer they are to Hill, the more impact they're seeing," Andersen said. "Employees who usually leave the base for lunch, or to get a haircut, are now not on the base. They're at home, saving money."Also, a shutdown puts the city behind in its business dealings with the federal government, 自存倉nderson said.For example, the city had to cancel a scheduled meeting about a proposed joint-use runaway between Hill and Layton. Engineers involved in the discussion were caught in the government shutdown."It affects our day to day conversations with the base," Andersen said. "It sets us and others behind on our conversations. There's work to be done."J.J. Allen, assistant city manager for Clearfield, said his city doesn't have a huge amount of retail business, so sales tax is less of a concern for officials. However, a number of defense contractors in the city are affected by the shutdown, and that could prove problematic."Nobody is pushing the panic button -- nobody is even close to the panic button," Allen said."Obviously, families are effected, and the impact on individual families is very real and very unfortunate. But the city itself does not face that kind of impact."Brandon Koford, assistant proffesor of economics at Weber State University, said that impact on individuals is the real story here."I think these things have a huge personal side, but my gut reaction is that they won't have a huge economic impact."The important thing is that (the shutdown) does have real and serious impact on lives. For people directly affected, it's a big deal."Economy-wise? Not so much.Of course, this could all depend on how long the shutdown continues."If it lasts a week, it's an economic blip," said John Stone, assistant professor of economics at WSU. "If it lasts a month -- who knows?"Koford said if the shutdown bumps up against the Oct. 17 deadline for razing the U.S. debt ceiling, things could get really bad, really fast."If we're still in shutdown then, I think you'll see the affects ramp up," he said.Another economic cost of the government shutdown could well be the impact on investor's expectations, said John Mbaku, WSU professor of economics."The economy runs a lot on expectations. If this (shutdown) continues, it can frighten people in terms of investment. ... If your trying to put confidence in the economy, this is not the way to do it."Still, WSU Economics Department Chairwoman Doris Geide-Stevenson says the government shutdown is not the result of economic pressures."I don't think it's an economics problem, it's a political problem," he said."The U.S. does not have an economic problem. It has a political problem ...""... that could become an economic problem," Koford added.Contact reporter Mark Saal at 801-625-4272 or msaal@standard.net. Follow him on Twitter at @Saalman.Copyright: ___ (c)2013 the Standard-Examiner (Ogden, Utah) Visit the Standard-Examiner (Ogden, Utah) at .standard.net Distributed by MCT Information Servicesmini storage