NORFOLK, Va. – The federal government shutdown has prompted Virginia’s second-largest city to offer help to furloughed federal employees.

The city of Norfolk said in a statement Friday that it’s offering assistance through payment plans on property taxes, water bills and city parking fees.

The assistance is being offered to people who work for various federal departments. Those include the Department of Interior and the Department of Homeland Security. The latter employs U.S. Coast Guard members and TSA agents who are working without pay.

Norfolk is part of Virginia’s Hampton Roads region, where there is a heavy presence of federal government workers and contractors. It includes NASA’s Langley Research Center, various Coast Guard stations and a larger regional airport.

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