Congress Agrees to Another Funding Patch as Deadline Looms

Today, Congressional leaders reached an agreement on a fourth continuing resolution (CR) to temporarily fund the government beyond March 1, the first of two funding deadlines, with the plan to consider a full year spending package for six of the twelve annual spending bills next week. Under the agreement, final text on bills to fund Agriculture/FDA, Energy & Water, Military Construction, Transportation/Housing, Interior, and Commerce/Justice/Science could be released as soon as this weekend, with final passage in advance of the new deadline established in the CR of March 8. This set of bills includes important University priorities, including the National Science Foundation, Department of Energy Office of Science, and the Environmental Protection Agency. Additionally, the CR would extend funding for the remaining bills, including those that fund the Departments of Defense, Education, and Health, through March 22 to give Congressional leaders additional time to negotiate agency and program funding levels and policy provisions. Currently, the plan is to pass the CR in the House and the Senate before the March 1 deadline to avert a partial government shutdown, although, given the procedural challenges of doing so, a very short-term lapse in appropriations – possibly just over the weekend – is possible.

In the next few weeks, Congress will have to finish the FY24 appropriations process so they can immediately begin work on the spending bills for FY25, which will officially begin when President Biden releases his budget request on March 11.

Additional updates, including on the final disposition of University’s priorities for FY24 and the President’s requests for FY25, will be shared as soon as they are available.