With the fiscal year ending on September 30, Congress is once again poised to punt full-year government spending decisions until later this fall. At the moment, neither party seems interested in a government shutdown and instead appear happy to delay policy and funding fights.
A two-year budget agreement, which included raising the debt limit, was reached just before the August recess. Before this agreement was reached, the House forged ahead, completing work on 10 of its 12 appropriations bills. The Senate waited on an agreement to be reached and now plans to spend the month of September and beyond considering appropriations bills as they are discharged from the committee.
House leaders have indicated that this week they plan to consider a continuing resolution (CR) through November 21, which provides Thanksgiving week as the deadline and incentive to finish year-end work. While Senate leaders haven’t indicated a preferred date for the CR, they are likely to follow suit.
We should be thankful that an October government shutdown looks unlikely at this point. But this month will kick off the beginning of serious negotiations on funding allocations, in addition to policy riders and border and immigration policy.
Bridge Public Affairs follows and influences the federal funding process for our clients. Funding and policy riders included in annual spending bills can have an enormous impact on your business or organization. We understand how to navigate the process. Let us know if we can be helpful to you.