Passed
370 Yea48 Nay14 Not voting2/3 required
HR-6500-119
Became Public Law No: 119-103.
Sponsored by Jason Smith (R-MO)
What it does
This bill would extend federal government funding at fiscal year 2026 levels through December 11, 2026, preventing a government shutdown while a full-year FY2027 budget is negotiated. It also extends dozens of expiring authorities and programs (including the African Growth and Opportunity Act trade preferences, customs user fees, cybersecurity information-sharing law, flood insurance authority, and surface transportation and veterans affairs programs), makes targeted funding adjustments for specific accounts (shipbuilding cost overruns, disaster relief, Indian Health Service facilities, HUD rental assistance), and includes several one-time provisions such as death benefit payments to family members of two deceased former members of Congress.
Who benefits
Federal agencies and employees who avoid furloughs or shutdown disruptions; recipients of federal programs continuing uninterrupted, including SNAP/WIC beneficiaries, Medicaid recipients in the Northern Mariana Islands, Indian Health Service patients, HUD rental assistance recipients, and veterans; African and Caribbean apparel exporters and U.S. importers benefiting from continued AGOA and Haiti trade preferences; defense contractors with shipbuilding programs receiving cost-overrun funding; and the families of the two named deceased former members of Congress receiving death benefit payments.
Who is hurt
Agencies and programs that would have received funding increases or new starts under a full-year FY2027 appropriations bill are held at FY2026 levels, potentially constraining new initiatives; Defense Department programs are barred from new production starts or rate increases beyond FY2026 levels; contractors and grantees expecting new program authority face delays; taxpayers bear the cost of continued spending and rescinded/reallocated funds noted in the bill; some HUD fair housing and homeless assistance balances are rescinded and redirected rather than used for their original purposes.
Supporters argue
Supporters argue this bill prevents a disruptive government shutdown that would furlough federal workers, delay veterans' benefits, and disrupt agricultural, nutrition, and disaster relief programs while Congress finishes full-year appropriations. They contend the targeted extensions—covering trade preferences for African and Caribbean nations, cybersecurity information sharing, and flood insurance—prevent lapses in programs that businesses and communities rely on, and that the specific carve-outs for shipbuilding overruns and tribal health facilities address urgent operational needs identified by agencies.
Opponents argue
Opponents argue continuing resolutions like this one perpetuate a pattern of governing through short-term patches rather than deliberate full-year budgeting, freezing agencies at prior-year funding levels regardless of changed needs and creating uncertainty for long-term planning. They contend the bill's numerous unrelated riders—covering everything from patent fee authority to a specific HUD loan program to individual death benefit payments—illustrate how must-pass funding vehicles are used to attach provisions that would not survive standalone scrutiny.
Passed
Motion to Table Agreed to (61-32)
Bill Passed (90-6, 3/5 majority required)
Cloture Motion Agreed to (91-6, 3/5 majority required)
Cloture on the Motion to Proceed Agreed to (89-4, 3/5 majority required)
Passed