21:27
Tieng Anh Vui
The US government has begun a partial shutdown after the Republican-led House of Representatives refused to approve a budget for next year.
A midnight deadline passed without agreement despite an 11th-hour appeal by President Barack Obama.
More than 700,000 US government workers face unpaid leave with no guarantee of back pay once the deadlock is over.
Republicans have insisted on delaying President Obama's health care reforms as a condition for passing the budget.
With less than one hour to go before midnight, the Republican-led House called for a bipartisan committee with the Senate to try to thrash out a deal, but Democrats said it was too late to avoid a shutdown.
The White House's budget office began notifying federal agencies to begin an "orderly shutdown" as midnight approached.
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Now they have gone over the cliff - not because of a massive miscalculation or even misstep, but a bravado-fuelled game of dare that was almost bound to end this way”
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It is the US government's first partial shutdown in 17 years.
Obama address
On Monday afternoon, the Democratic-led Senate voted 54-46 against a bill from House Republicans that would have funded the government only if President Obama's healthcare law - dubbed Obamacare - was delayed for a year.
The US stock market dropped amid fears of political deadlock, although analysts say serious damage to the economy is unlikely unless the shutdown lasts for more than a few days.
Early on Monday evening, President Obama went on national television to criticise Republicans for trying to refight the last election.
A shutdown would have "a very real economic impact on real people, right away," he said, adding it would "throw a wrench" into the US recovery.
"The idea of putting the American people's hard-earned progress at risk is the height of irresponsibility, and it doesn't have to happen."
President Obama: "Time is running out"
After the Senate vote, the chamber's Democratic majority leader blamed Republicans for the imminent halt to all non-essential government operations.
"It will be a Republican government shutdown, pure and simple," said Harry Reid of Nevada, referring to the Republicans as "bullies".
The House then passed another bill on Monday evening to fund the government - but with a one-year delay to one of the health law's primary elements not due to begin on 1 October, the individual mandate.
"The American people don't want a shutdown and neither do I," House Speaker John Boehner said, but added that the healthcare law was "having a devastating impact... Something has to be done".
The Senate again rejected the Obamacare provisions with less than three hours before the deadline.
Major portions of the healthcare law, which passed in 2010 and has been validated by the US Supreme Court, are due to take effect on Tuesday regardless of whether there is a shutdown.
Under the shutdown, national parks and Washington's Smithsonian museums will close, pension and veterans' benefit cheques will be delayed, and visa and passport applications will go unprocessed.
Programmes deemed essential, such as air traffic control and food inspections, will continue.
- State department will be able to operate for limited time
- Department of defence would continue military operations
- Department of education would still distribute $22bn (£13.6bn) to public schools, but staffing would be severely hit
- Department of energy - 12,700 staff would be sent home, 1,113 remain to oversee nuclear arsenal
- Department of health and human services to send home more than half of staff
- The Federal Reserve, dept of homeland security, and justice dept would see little or no disruption
- US Postal Services would continue as normal
- Smithsonian institutions, museums, zoos and many national parks would be closed
The defence department has advised employees that uniformed members of the military will continue on normal duty, but that large numbers of civilian workers will be told to stay home.
On Monday evening, President Obama signed legislation ensuring that military personnel would be paid.
The US government has not undergone a shutdown since 1995-96, when services were suspended for a record 21 days.
Republicans demanded then-President Bill Clinton agree to their version of a balanced budget.
After weeks of negotiation, they reached a compromise similar to what was discussed prior to the shutdown.
As lawmakers grappled with the latest shutdown, the 17 October deadline for extending the government's borrowing limit looms even larger.
On that date, the US government will reach the limit at which it can borrow money to pay its bills, the so-called debt ceiling.
House Republicans have also demanded a series of policy concessions - including on the president's health law and on financial and environmental regulations - in exchange for raising the debt ceiling.
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