at that time the shutdown began, all state government spending and operations not considered to be critical stopped. suspended state services included driving tests, childcare assistance, senior and disability linkage lines, criminal background checks, and road construction. state government offices, state parks, highway rest areas, and sites run by the minnesota historical society, among others, closed. the commissioner of the department of human services, lucinda jesson, said that letters had to be sent to over 580,000 households that relied on the department for social services to notify them about the possible shutdown. more critical parts of the state government, including public safety, health care, benefit payments, and care for residents of state facilities continued. services that were continued during the shutdown could have amounted to as much as 80 percent of state spending.