On September 25, the House and Senate approved a continuing resolution (CR) to keep the federal government funded through December 20, 2024, and avert a government shutdown. Federal Managers Association (FMA) National President Craig Carter, who urged all members of Congress earlier in the month to craft a solution, expressed relief and frustration that Congress once again relied on a continuing resolution to punt the debate on providing full year appropriations for federal agencies.

“The Federal Managers Association is relieved Congress approved this continuing resolution to prevent a harmful government shutdown,” Carter wrote. “It will keep America’s hard working federal employees on the job, ensuring Americans will continue to receive the vital services they provide into December. While we supported this short-term Band-Aid, CRs hinder the ability of the government and military to plan for the fiscal year ahead. They reduce government’s buying power and increase costs to taxpayers. The result of a CR is the loss of billions of dollars. We are disappointed Congress has once again relied on a CR to keep the government running.”

“We continue to urge both chambers of Congress to return to regular order and fully fund Fiscal Year 2025 as soon as possible” he continued. “Providing regular appropriations should be the number one priority of Congress, and is critical to enabling federal workers and agencies to carry out their crucial missions on behalf of the American people,” Carter concluded.

Given the CR will only keep the federal government operating through December 20, Congress will have a lot of unfinished business when it returns on November 12. The House Appropriations Committee passed all 12 appropriations bills, and five of the 12 have passed on the House floor. However, these bills continue to face an uphill climb with concerns lingering in the U.S. Senate and veto threats from the White House. President Biden issued a veto threat for all of these spending bills, as passed by the House, based on funding levels and policy disagreements.

The Senate Appropriations Committee has approved all but one (Homeland Security) of the 12 funding bills. Votes in committee have been strongly bipartisan, with six of the bills passing unanimously. However, strong partisan differences remain on spending levels, and the path forward on the Senate floor remains unclear.

The outcome of the November elections will undoubtedly impact Fiscal Year 2025 appropriations negotiations in the lame duck remainder of the 118th Congress. One thing not to expect, according to House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) is another omnibus appropriations bill in December. “So, we’ve had no choice, but I want to assure everyone . . . we are not going to return to a Christmas omnibus spending tradition, and that’s significant,” Johnson said.