In an effort to prevent a potential government shutdown on October 1 (the start of the federal government’s new fiscal year), Congressional Republicans are prepping legislation to keep the government fully funded until at least mid-December. The House and Senate approaches differ, but both would generally continue current funding levels until after the November mid-term elections.
The House passed its version of this temporary funding authority (H.R.9770, a continuing resolution, or CR), on July 21, on a 220-205 mostly party-line vote (six Democrats voted with the Republicans). The House bill is a straightforward continuation, until December 4, of all current discretionary spending authority—there are no ‘anomalies” (i.e., policy and/or changes to current funding levels), or “poison pills” (e.g., partisan policy riders like abortion restrictions).
The Senate passed its version of the CR, H.R.6500, on August 8, just before breaking for its August recess. The Senate passed the bill overwhelmingly, by a vote of 90 to 6. The bipartisan measure would fund the government’s discretionary spending at Fiscal Year (FY) 2026 levels through December 11. It also contains a number of anomalies, some of which were requested by the Trump Administration, and some that reflect Democratic priorities.
The Senate and House versions of the CR now have to be reconciled and that means that there will be more negotiations after Labor Day. Failure to reach a bicameral agreement would mean a government shutdown just five weeks prior to the November mid-term elections, a result that neither Republicans nor Democrats want. Currently and unofficially, it appears that many House lawmakers are open to the changes made by the Senate. But it takes only a handful—two or three—Republicans to object to scuttle a proposal, so the post-August recess negotiations will tell the tale about whether Congress will succeed in staving off a government shutdown crisis at the end of September.
Prospects: Senate rules required at least 60 votes to pass the CR, so the bipartisan negotiations were a necessity. However, if bicameral negotiations on the CR fail, temporary funding could be authorized via the also-pending budget reconciliation bill (see story below for details). The budget reconciliation bill is an all-GOP measure that would need only a simple (51-vote) majority to pass.
Senate Republican leadership is holding the House-passed Congressional Budget Resolution (CBR) so that it is available as a vehicle to enact the temporary spending authority that would avert a government shutdown should the bipartisan/bicameral negotiations on the CR fail. A final CBR—which will trigger the crafting of a reconciliation bill—will not happen before Labor Day with both houses in recess.
NAIFA Staff Contacts: Diane Boyle – Senior Vice President – Government Relations, at dboyle@naifa.org; Mike Hedge – Senior Director – Government Relations, at mhedge@naifa.org; or Jayne Fitzgerald – Director – Government Relations, at jfitzgerald@naifa.org