Senate Passes FY2027 Stopgap 90-6, Sending House and Senate to Resolve Competing CR Versions Before Oct. 1 Deadline

WASHINGTON, The Senate voted 90-6 on Aug. 8 to pass a continuing resolution that would keep the federal government funded through Dec. 11, setting up a compressed negotiation with the House before the Sept. 30 deadline, according to a client alert reviewed by Brownstein Farber Schreck.

The two chambers are now working from different stopgap bills. The House passed its own version on July 21 by a vote of 220-205, according to NPR. That measure funds the government at existing fiscal year 2026 levels through Dec. 4 and contains no additional provisions. Six Democrats crossed the aisle to support it.

The Senate version runs a week longer, through Dec. 11, and carries several provisions the House bill omits. According to the National Association of Counties, the Senate CR continues funding at FY 2026 levels across all 12 major appropriations divisions while including targeted funding allocations and program-specific provisions.

The most contested add-on is a delay on an Office of Management and Budget rule that would overhaul how federal grants are administered. According to the National Association of Counties, the Senate CR blocks that OMB rule from taking effect while the resolution is in force. House Appropriations Committee Ranking Member Rosa DeLauro, D-Conn., said in a statement that the Senate measure "delays the implementation of a proposed regulation by the Office of Management and Budget to concentrate power over federal grantmaking in the hands of political appointees."

DeLauro also said the Senate bill "restores language that was omitted from the House-passed resolution precluding the transfer of funds to the Border Patrol without substantial reforms," according to her statement released Aug. 8.

Senate Appropriations Committee Chair Susan Collins, R-Maine, and Vice Chair Patty Murray, D-Wash., announced the Senate CR on Aug. 2, according to a Brownstein alert. The 90-6 margin reflected broad bipartisan pressure to avoid a third shutdown in less than a year. According to the Federal Funds Information for States, fiscal year 2026 opened with the longest government-wide shutdown on record, lasting 43 days, followed by a separate DHS shutdown that stretched for several additional months.

The Senate CR also includes White House-requested funding exceptions, known as anomalies, that were not in the House bill. Those cover military health programs, national security accounts, and national park operations, according to the Conference Board policy backgrounder published Aug. 13.

The House is expected to take up the Senate version when members return from recess on Aug. 31, according to the Association of Educational Service Agencies. The White House has signaled support for the Senate bill, which gives House leaders room to move without triggering a veto threat.

But the window is narrow. According to AESA, Congress will have roughly 15 legislative days remaining before Oct. 1 once members return. Any failure to reconcile the two bills and send a final version to the president would trigger a full government shutdown at the start of fiscal year 2027.

A separate complication looms over full-year spending talks. According to AESA, Senate appropriators have been unable to advance the bipartisan negotiations that typically anchor end-of-year spending deals. Any final bill needs 60 votes in the Senate, which requires bipartisan support, but disagreements between Senate appropriations leaders have stalled that process.

Congress also faces a year-end deadline on the farm bill and questions about military funding tied to ongoing foreign commitments, according to the Conference Board.

Sources cited:
- National Association of Counties (https://www.naco.org/news/senate-passes-bill-fund-government-through-december-11-and-delay-omb-rule)
- Brownstein Farber Schreck (client alert, Aug. 8, 2026) (https://www.bhfs.com/insight/cr-and-far-between-can-the-house-and-senate-find-a-funding-solution/)
- NPR (https://www.npr.org/2026/07/21/nx-s1-5902245/government-funding-house-vote-continuing-resolution)
- House Appropriations Committee (DeLauro statement, Aug. 8, 2026) (https://democrats-appropriations.house.gov/news/press-releases/delauro-statement-senate-passage-continuing-resolution)
- Association of Educational Service Agencies (FY2027 Appropriations Update, Aug. 13, 2026) (https://www.aesa.us/2026/08/13/fy2027-appropriations-update/)
- Conference Board Policy Backgrounder (https://www.conference-board.org/research/policy-backgrounders/congress-moves-closer-to-avoiding-government-shutdown)
- Federal Funds Information for States (https://ffis.org/budget-brief/house-and-senate-move-to-minimize-fy-2027-government-shutdown-risk/)