The FCC suspended most operations on Thursday afternoon as a result of the ongoing government shutdown over a dumb fence many argue creates far more problems than it solves. The resulting shutdown has left 800,000 government employees furloughed without pay, while garbage and human waste begin to pile up at the nation’s staff-depleted national park system.

According to the FCC, “all FCC activities will cease” as of mid-day Thursday, “other than those immediately necessary for the protection of life or property, performing other excepted activities, or those funded through a source other than lapsed appropriations.”

While a shutdown of a few days shouldn’t be a problem, a longer shutdown could put a serious damper on the agency’s agenda, former FCC lawyer Gigi Sohn told Motherboard.

More at Vice Motherboard.