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Status of FY 2026 Funding: Government Funding Running Out!

Last Tuesday, House Republican leadership released a draft short-term continuing resolution (CR) to fund the government through November 21.  The CR does not include any obvious poison pills, but contrary to GOP messaging, it is not truly “clean.”  Generally, the CR would extend FY 2025 funding levels for federal agencies and programs at current levels.  Beyond that, it would:

  • Extend several expiring authorities through November 21, including for the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program, the National Flood Insurance program, the Cybersecurity Information Sharing Act (specifically, authorities that shield companies from liability if they share details about discovered cyber vulnerabilities with federal agencies), and pandemic-era provisions allowing for greater Medicare coverage of telehealth services;
  • Accommodate some White House-requested funding anomalies (funding adjustments), including additional funding for certain defense programs and disaster aid;
  • Freeze the remaining enforcement money allocated to the IRS as part of the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 for the duration of the CR;
  • Allow the District of Columbia to spend its full budget through September 2026 (Congress blocked that authority in the last CR, causing a $1 billion funding shortfall for D.C.); and
  • Allocate $30 million for lawmaker security and $58 million to provide enhanced protection for members of the executive branch and justices on the U.S. Supreme Court.

Last Friday, the House voted 217-212 to pass the CR. Two Republicans, Reps. Tom Massie (R-KY) and Victoria Spartz (R-IN), voted against the measure and one Democrat, Rep. Jared Goldman (R-ME), voted for it.  House leadership then cancelled session days previously scheduled for next week, meaning that the chamber will not reconvene until after the government shutdown deadline.

Later on Friday, the Senate took preliminary procedural votes on both the House-passed CR and on an alternative CR offered by Democrats.  The Democrats’ short-term funding bill would keep the government open through October 31.  It also would:

  • Permanently extend enhanced Affordable Care Act (ACA) premium tax credits, which are scheduled to expire at the end of this year;
  • Repeal nearly $1 trillion in cuts to Medicaid included in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act;
  • Push back at the administration’s efforts to rescind previously-appropriated funding, for example by restoring some funding cancelled by recission earlier this year; specifying a schedule for spending National Science Foundation and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration funds that the administration has slowed down; and permanently blocking the President from using the fast-track procedure authorized by the Congressional Impoundment Control Act to rescind funds with a simple majority in the Senate;
  • Restore D.C.’s authority to spend its full budget; and
  • Increase spending on security for federal officials by providing $90 million for security for House members; $66.5 million for Senate members; $30 million for U.S. Capitol Police, mutual aid reimbursements, and other costs; $52 million for judicial security; $28 million specifically for U.S. Supreme Court security; $30 million for U.S. Marshals Service protective security; and $30 million for courthouse security renovations.

Republicans would not accept their alternative CR. Neither version of the CR garnered the 60 votes required to end a filibuster. The Senate voted first on the Democrat’s CR – that vote split on party lines, with 47 Democrats voting for it and 45 Republicans voting against it (eight Republicans did not vote).  The House Republican-passed bill failed to win even majority support, with 44 votes in favor and 48 members voting against it.  One Democrat, Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA), voted for the House CR, and two Republicans, Sens. Rand Paul (R-KY) and Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), voted against it.

When the Senate returns next Monday, it will have just two days until the government shuts down. Candidly, the health care issues Democrats have highlighted in their CR poll well for them, if a shutdown does occur, the Democrats will focus their media attention on those issues, and if health insurance premiums spike this fall Democrats will have made their case that the blame lies with Republicans. By this logic, the situation is analogous to the 2013 government shutdown, initiated by Senate Republicans in a fight over repeal of the ACA.  The Republicans did not win what it demanded then, but the shutdown rallied its base, and in the 2014 midterm elections Republicans won control of the Senate and increased their House majority.

Of course, a government shutdown could go very badly for Democrats too.  Historically, the party that makes demands to keep the government open is the one that the public blames, and that could impact votes by independents in next year’s elections.  Congressional Republicans will point out that they are willing to negotiate on a long-term spending bill, just not in the context of a stop-gap measure.  On top of that, the Trump administration has broad discretion over what government functions will be deemed essential and kept open despite a funding lapse.

Majority Leader Thune is expected to bring the House-passed CR back to the floor for another vote next week.  If six more Senate Democrats have second thoughts at the eleventh-hour, that measure could pass, but it appears very likely that a shutdown will happen.

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