With just hours left before a government shutdown, Congress passed a bipartisan continuing resolution (CR) on September 30 to extend government funding for fiscal year 2024 (FY24) through November 17. The CR provides funding at the FY23 level for 45 days, in addition to funding the Administration’s request for $16 billion for the Disaster Relief Fund through the Federal Emergency Management Agency. 

The Senate is expected to vote soon on a package of appropriations bills, including their FY24 THUD and Agriculture-FDA proposals. Chair of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee for THUD Brian Schatz (D-HI) introduced bipartisan amendments that would permanently authorize the Community Development Block Grant-Disaster Recovery program through the passage of the Reforming Disaster Recovery Act and provide emergency supplemental funding for recent disasters. For more information on the housing and community development spending proposals from the Senate, please read our blog post providing an analysis. 

The House Rules Committee’s amendment deadline for the FY24 Transportation, Housing and Urban Development Appropriations (THUD) bill was on October 5. A hearing in the committee is expected to take place later this month before it moves to the House floor for a vote. The FY24 House Agriculture, Rural Development, and Food and Drug Administration (Agriculture-FDA) proposal failed to pass on the House floor on September 28th and is expected to be reconsidered at a later date. Complicating the House process, the chamber voted to vacate House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA). This is the first time in U.S. history this action has been taken. As the House works through a potentially contentious election of a new Speaker, there is a lot of uncertainty about the powers of the Speaker Pro Tempore Rep. Patrick McHenry (R-NC). 

Congress must come to an agreement on funding for all 12 appropriations bills before the new deadline to avoid another potential government shutdown threat in less than 45 days.