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What is the process to avoid a US government shutdown?
Executive Summary
To avoid a U.S. government shutdown, Congress must enact funding legislation—either the 12 regular appropriations bills or a stopgap continuing resolution (CR)—and the President must sign it before the fiscal year deadline of September 30; failing that, agencies face funding gaps and curtailed activities [1] [2]. Recent negotiations show partisan disputes over policy riders versus a “clean” CR and votes thresholds in the Senate, making political compromise the decisive barrier even when procedural fixes exist [3] [4].
1. Why the clock matters: the legal trigger that forces a shutdown
A government shutdown is triggered by a funding gap when Congress fails to pass appropriations before the fiscal year cutoff of September 30, invoking the Antideficiency Act which bars spending without authorization; the practical legal remedy to prevent this is passing the regular appropriations or a continuing resolution (CR) that temporarily extends prior funding levels [1] [5]. Historically, funding gaps have repeatedly produced shutdowns—major examples include the 35-day 2018–2019 shutdown and other notable multi-week events—illustrating that the rule is consistent: timely legislation avoids shutdowns, while political standoffs cause them [6]. The CR is a routine congressional tool codified with features such as coverage, duration, funding rates, and restrictions on new activities; its use is a procedural, not extraordinary, means to buy time for negotiations [7].
2. The practical pathways: appropriations bills versus stopgap fixes
Congress has two practical pathways to keep the government open: complete the 12 annual appropriations bills that set agency budgets for the full fiscal year, or enact a Continuing Resolution that maintains prior-year funding levels for a set period while lawmakers finalize appropriations [2] [5]. A CR can be narrow or broad, include anomalies that adjust specific funding lines, or be a “clean” extension without policy riders; negotiations often focus less on the mechanics of funding and more on whether controversial policy changes are attached. Legislative text such as the Full-Year Continuing Appropriations and Extensions Act, 2025, demonstrates how Congress can use statutory continuing appropriations to avert a shutdown by providing temporary or full-year authority until regular measures pass [8].
3. The political bottleneck: negotiation dynamics and Senate arithmetic
Avoiding a shutdown frequently comes down to political compromise and chamber math rather than legal options. The House can pass a CR, but the Senate often requires supermajority support to overcome procedural hurdles—60 votes to proceed on major measures when a filibuster is in play—which can make a simple House-passed measure insufficient if the Senate’s moderates or the minority party withhold support [4]. Recent reporting shows Democrats conditioning support for short-term funding on extensions of health insurance subsidies and Medicaid-related issues, while Republicans push for a “clean” CR without such provisions; that divide makes a negotiated deal necessary even when procedural CRs are available [3]. Consequently, the political leverage of policy riders and the willingness of moderates determine whether legislative pathways can be executed on time.
4. What must happen to end a shutdown once it starts
Once a shutdown occurs, the pathway to resume normal operations is the same: enact new appropriations or a CR and obtain the President’s signature; the President cannot unilaterally end a shutdown without enacted appropriations, because funding must be authorized by Congress [1]. Essential services and mandatory spending typically continue despite a shutdown, but discretionary programs and many agency operations are paused; restoring full functionality requires retroactive or prospective funding measures that a signed law provides. The interplay between congressional passage and presidential approval means both branches play defined roles: Congress creates appropriations authority, the President signs or vetoes, and until that authority exists, spending prohibitions under the Antideficiency Act remain operative [1] [8].
5. The big picture: recurring pattern, policy leverage, and timelines
Government shutdowns recur because the procedural remedies—regular appropriations and CRs—are available but politically costly when parties use funding bills to advance policy priorities; the pattern is predictable: deadline approaches prompt either full-year spending bills or stopgaps, and when parties refuse to compromise, shutdown ensues, as seen in past high-profile shutdowns [6]. The policy stakes (health subsidies, Medicaid cuts, etc.) create leverage that converts a fiscal procedural fight into a substantive policy fight, so the real determinant of avoidance is willingness to trade policy concessions for continuity of government rather than a lack of procedural options [3] [2]. Recent legislative maneuvers, including House-passed CRs with near-term expiration dates, reflect this timeline-driven bargaining and the centrality of Senate supermajority dynamics to whether a shutdown will be avoided or resolved [4] [8].