The House of Representatives voted 370-48 to pass a conferenced, short-term continuing resolution (CR) to fund the federal government through Dec. 11, but the House Appropriations chair still criticized the Senate for not working on its individual appropriations bills.
The stopgap spending bill now heads to President Donald Trump’s desk for his signature to become law and prevent a government shutdown.
The resolution would maintain government operations and funding for the military and security agencies, as well as authorities supporting research and development programs, according to Cole.
The bill also has some adjustments for the Department of Energy’s National Nuclear Security Administration and Office of Environmental Management. Some adjustments listed in the CR were the 17-D -640 U1a Complex Enhancements Project at Nevada National Security Site and 21-D-401 Hoisting Capability Project at the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant. The CR seeks to authorize enough funding to make sure that these vital programs will not be disrupted or demobilized, according to the bill.
Speaking on the House floor before the House voted on the Senate’s amended version of the bill, House Appropriations Committee Chairman Tom Cole (R-Okla.) urged passage of the bill. He also said Congress has a constitutional responsibility to fund the government and highlighted the House Appropriations Committee’s progress, noting it “reported out” all 12 fiscal 2027 spending bills by mid-June, “the earliest we have done so since Fiscal Year 2020.”
However, Cole criticized the Senate for not yet reporting any appropriations bills from its Appropriations Committee, saying the Sept. 30 end of fiscal 2026 is approaching faster than Congress can complete its work.
Cole described the Senate amendments as a “clean, short-term continuing resolution” without partisan riders or “poison pills.” He said the measure would preserve the House’s progress toward full-year fiscal 2027 appropriations while giving Congress additional time to act following the November elections.