House GOP leaders have released a stopgap funding bill to keep federal agencies open past Sept. 30 and avert a partial government shutdown, with a House vote expected next week, according to The Hill.
- The measure is a continuing resolution (CR) intended to extend current funding levels into fiscal year 2025, The Hill reported.
- House Republicans said the CR would fund the government through Dec. 4, pushing the next funding deadline into early December.
- The current fiscal year ends Sept. 30; without new appropriations or a CR, a shutdown would begin Oct. 1.
- The bill’s release sets up a high-stakes fight with the Senate and the White House over how to avoid a shutdown and what, if any, policy provisions should be attached, according to The Hill.
- A shutdown would disrupt many federal operations and could affect civilian pay timing and military support functions, depending on which activities are deemed “excepted” under shutdown rules.
Brief context
Congress has not enacted full-year appropriations for fiscal year 2025. Continuing resolutions are commonly used to prevent shutdowns by temporarily extending prior-year funding while negotiations continue. The latest House GOP proposal would buy roughly two additional months for talks after the Sept. 30 deadline, The Hill reported.
For federal employees and service members, the immediate issue is continuity of operations. In a shutdown, many civilian employees are furloughed while “excepted” employees continue working; agencies also pause or slow a wide range of administrative and contracting actions. Service members generally continue to report for duty, but shutdown-driven disruptions can hit civilian support, training schedules, base services, and processing backlogs.
The next week’s House vote will be a key test of whether leaders can pass a CR with their conference and then negotiate a path that can clear the Senate and be signed into law before Sept. 30. If Congress fails to act in time, agencies would begin executing shutdown plans, including issuing furlough notices and curtailing non-excepted work.
Source: The Hill