Summary

On September 2, 2026, the President signed into law H.R. 6500, the Continuing Appropriations and Extensions Act, 2027 (P.L. 119-103). Division A of the act—the Continuing Appropriations Act, 2027—provides continuing appropriations for FY2027 through December 11, 2026. Measures providing continuing appropriations are commonly referred to as “continuing resolutions,” or “CRs,” because they have historically been enacted in the form of a joint resolution. The Continuing Appropriations Act, 2027, provides appropriations for federal agencies funded through all 12 regular appropriations bills to continue operations from October 1, 2026, through December 11, 2026—a 72-day period covering roughly the first 10 weeks of FY2027. Congress must enact regular appropriations bills for FY2027 or an additional CR prior to the expiration of this CR to avoid a funding gap beginning on December 12, 2026, that may result in a shutdown of affected government activities. For most covered programs, projects, and activities, the CR provides funding at a rate for operations based largely on the funding amounts, authorities, and conditions provided for in regular appropriations acts enacted for FY2026. The CR includes several provisions that may further define or affect the amounts available for certain purposes. These include provisions establishing certain limitations on agency operations under the CR and provisions—known as “anomalies”—that establish exceptions to the CR’s general funding for specific accounts or programs. According to an estimate prepared by the Congressional Budget Office (CBO), Division A of P.L. 119-103 is projected to provide a total annualized amount of $1.701 trillion in discretionary budget authority for FY2027. The CR includes several provisions that are specific to certain agencies or accounts. These include anomalies as well as other legislative provisions related to amending and/or extending existing provisions of law. The section of this report titled “Agency-, Account-, and Program-Specific Provisions” summarizes each of these provisions included in the CR. CRS experts for the subject matters covered in these summaries are indicated in the report’s footnotes.

What this is

The Congressional Research Service is a nonpartisan policy and legal analysis arm of the Library of Congress. CRS reports are written for members of Congress and their staff, not the public — but they’re made available openly through Congress.gov.