U.S. House will attempt to stave off government shutdown

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(The Center Square) – The U.S. House of Representatives will vote this week on a continuing resolution, preventing the government from shutting down in October and buying lawmakers more time to finish all 12 annual appropriations bills.

The short-term funding stopgap, which cleared the Senate right before Congress recessed for the month of August, freezes most government funding across agencies at current levels until Dec. 11.

Crucial to winning Democratic support, the CR also increases funding for certain federal programs. It slightly boosts funding for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, disaster relief, wildfire management, U.S. Navy shipbuilding, small business loans, and multiple federal housing programs to meet expected demand through Dec. 11.

It also extends some programs and grants set to run out of money on Sept. 30, the end of fiscal 2026. Those include the Food for Peace program and other foreign aid; highway infrastructure and surface transportation programs; the National Flood Insurance Program; and certain veterans’ healthcare and economic support programs, among other things.

As additional Democratic sweeteners, the bill temporarily prohibits the Office of Management and Budget from tasking political appointees with decisions on grant awards and prevents any new funding — including cross-agency funding transfers — to immigration enforcement agencies.

The bipartisan approach may be crucial to averting a third costly shutdown, since congressional Democrats have already proven they are willing to block government funding over immigration policy.

Senate Democrats triggered the longest government shutdown in history in February, a 76-day shutdown of the Department of Homeland Security, over demands that Republicans implement drastic reforms to ICE and Border Patrol.

Democrats only voted to end the shutdown when Republicans stripped immigration enforcement funding from the Homeland Security appropriations bill entirely, though Republicans later infused ICE and Border Patrol with a three-year cash advance via a budget reconciliation bill.

That shutdown occurred only months after Democrats instigated a 42-day full government shutdown in an attempt to force Republicans to renew expiring COVID-19 era healthcare subsidies.