The ongoing stalemate over federal government funding in Washington is putting an essential safety net for low-income families with young children in limbo. 

Four Minnesota providers of Head Start, a national program serving infants to 5-year-olds in need, will run out of federal dollars on Nov. 1 when their annual grant is set to renew.

The shutdown puts that on pause and advocates warn that could force the program to shutter services and layoff staff the longer the federal funding fight drags on.

"We're very concerned about our kids and families and staff and trying to keep operations going for as long as we can, but definitely without federal support, there's some hard realities that we're facing," said Kraig Gratke, executive director of the Minnesota Head Start Association.

The programs facing the funding deadline serve 1,300 children. Gratke said other nonprofits administering the Head Start services to 11,100 additional children in Minnesota are on different grant timetables, so they're held harmless for now. Grant dates are scattered throughout the year.

The Anoka County Community Action Program, which operates Head Start preschool sites in the north and east Twin Cities metro, is among the four with the Nov. 1 deadline. Patrick McFarland, the executive director, said the state authorized accelerated use of state dollars allocated for Head Start to provide a stopgap that should put off any disruptions for a month, but that money makes up just a fraction of their budget. 

His team on Wednesday began planning for contingencies, assuming the shutdown continues. When Congress finally approves legislation with funding, there will still be a 30-day delay to receive the grant. 

"If the shutdown continues at the federal level over a month, we're going to have very serious problems here," McFarland said in an interview.

Jaycee Chrudimsky has three kids who all went through Head Start, including her youngest, a 4-year-old who is currently enrolled in the preschool program now. She said she would have to take off work if the funding lapse means the Coon Rapids site — administered by Anoka County Community Action — temporarily shuts down.

"It would impact her and that's the thing I worry about the most, because she looks forward to coming to school every single day and seeing her friends and being a part of the program," Chrudimsky said. "She's excelling, so I don't want her to fall back just because there's not funding for something that it shouldn't even be a question that is being funded."

The other three providers impacted are in west central Minnesota, Rochester and the Grand Portage Reservation on the tip of the Arrowhead.

Gratke said in some counties, Head Start is the only child care option for families and elsewhere there are alternatives, but options are limited. 

"It's going to be hard for families," he said.

McFarland also noted that impacts of the government shutdown extend further than just the early learning and child care services his organization provides. Nearly half of Head Start parents whose children are enrolled in their sites receive Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP.

More than 440,000 Minnesotans get those benefits, which also has funding set to expire Saturday, too. Anoka County Community Action also administers energy assistance for low-income households — yet another federal program that is in peril during the shutdown. 

"It's not theoretical about the government shutdown. It's actually real. It really affects people's lives," McFarland said.