Cynthia Brown had a plan.

While on intermittent family medical leave for an illness, Brown fell behind on car payments. However, she had an arrangement to make them up, as soon as she returned to work and received her first paycheck in October.

But just as she returned to work, the federal government shut down. She received a partial paycheck, but when she left her Arlington, Virginia, condo one day, she noticed the car had been taken.

Brown explained the circumstances, that her checks are paused during the shutdown. The amount she owed was reduced, but she still only has “so much time to redeem the car.”

It was a blow for Brown, who was planning to donate plasma and make deliveries through DoorDash, as part of a plan to get paid while the shutdown continued.

Brown has worked at the U

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