By Richard Cowan
WASHINGTON, Sept 1 (Reuters) – The U.S. House of Representatives on Tuesday overwhelmingly approved legislation to keep federal agencies operating beyond October 1 when existing funds are due to expire with the start of the new fiscal year.
By a vote of 370-48, the House passed the extension of current spending through December 11 and sent it to President Donald Trump for signing into law. The Senate passed the measure on August 8.
The temporary measure was needed because Congress so far has failed to finish work on any of the 12 spending bills that fund government programs for the full fiscal year that runs from October 1, 2026, through September 30, 2027. Those programs range from homeland security and federal law enforcement to energy, housing and defense.
Since the beginning of Trump’s second term, Congress has been consumed by particularly contentious fights between Republicans who control Congress and the Democratic minority in the House and Senate.
The result has been three partial government shutdowns, totaling an unprecedented 161 days, as the two parties fought over health insurance subsidies and checks on federal immigration officers’ enforcement powers.
This time, neither Republicans nor Democrats wanted a fourth shutdown hanging over them as they run for re-election, potentially enraging voters who already are angry about the high price of food and housing, the U.S. war against Iran and tariffs on foreign goods that have hit farmers particularly hard.
During debate of the temporary funding bill known as a “continuing resolution,” House Appropriations Committee Chairman Tom Cole of Oklahoma underscored the political sensitivities.
“This will give Congress time to get past the November elections,” Cole said, referring to the effort to pass the bill.
Representative Rosa DeLauro of Connecticut, the senior Democrat on the appropriations panel, argued that this bill was a move toward Congress reclaiming its constitutional power over spending. That, after the Trump administration since early 2025 took a series of unilateral actions, including severe cuts to federal agencies and even the elimination of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID).
“The power of the purse resides within the Congress. It is our exclusive responsibility,” DeLauro said, adding, “The first step in exercising that authority is passing this bill today.”
However, this stopgap bill fails to address any of the country’s major fiscal problems as its national debt crossed the $40 trillion threshold last month and Washington has failed to address voters’ top concern of affordability.
Furthermore, with the legislation delaying decision-making on spending priorities for another 15 weeks, Congress in December faces a potentially arduous task of writing and passing the 12 full-year spending bills.
The results of the November 3 congressional elections – with party control over Congress at stake – will be a major factor in whether Republicans or Democrats have the upper hand in those negotiations.
(Reporting by Richard Cowan in Washington; Editing by Michael Learmonth and Daniel Wallis)
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