A stacked column chart showing U.S. government shutdowns since 1976. Each shutdown in a given year is stacked to show the overall length of government shutdowns that year. Shutdowns were common in the 1970s and 1980s. There were 3 in 1977, lasting a total of 28 days. The shutdowns in the 1980s only lasted a few days on average. The most recent shutdowns were in 2018, when the government was shut a record 36 days.