WASHINGTON — Business leaders in Northern Virginia are pessimistic about regional prospects as the government shutdown drags on.

More than 40 percent of all federal employees reside in Northern Virginia, according to the Northern Virginia Regional Commission. With so many federal employees concentrated in the region, its economy is particularly susceptible to the dramatic changes the Trump administration has inflicted on the federal workforce.

According to the chamber’s fourth-quarter business leader survey, conducted along with Pinkston, 44 percent of business leaders in the region say the shutdown is causing their company to decline.

Meanwhile, 49 percent say it will decline in the next six months, while 26 percent believe it will plateau, and 26 percent say it will grow.

The cha

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