For once, a fiscal deadline in Washington came and went quietly.
The federal government's new fiscal year began at midnight, and for most of this past summer it looked like that moment could bring a repeat of last year's lengthy shutdown. Instead, nothing happened today, because lawmakers settled the matter weeks ago. Funding for federal agencies had been set to expire at the end of September, which would have triggered furloughs and disruptions right as the midterm election campaign was heating up. With five weeks to go until voters head to the polls, neither party wanted to be blamed for closing the government.
The path to today's calm start traces back to early August, when the Senate advanced its own stopgap funding bill by an overwhelming 89 to 4 vote, then passed it outright 90 to 6. That bill, formally the Continuing Appropriations and Extensions Act for 2027, funds federal agencies at current levels through December 11 and was negotiated in large part by Senator Susan Collins of Maine and Senator Patty Murray of Washington, the top Republican and Democrat on the Appropriations Committee. The House had passed its own version funding the government only through December 4, so the two chambers had to agree on a single date. When the House returned in early September, it approved the Senate's December 11 timeline by a wide bipartisan margin of 370 to 48. President Trump signed the bill into law on September 2, nearly a month before the deadline it was meant to avert.
The result is that the shutdown fight has simply been postponed rather than resolved. The new funding runs out on December 11, which is after the November midterm elections, meaning lawmakers avoided a shutdown colliding with their campaigns but still face the same underlying disagreements over spending levels later this year. For now, federal agencies, the courts, and the military continue operating normally, and the roughly two million federal employees who would have faced furloughs or unpaid work are unaffected.
The next funding deadline is December 11. Expect negotiations over full-year spending bills to pick up again once the midterm elections are behind lawmakers.
Did the government shut down today?
No. Congress passed a funding bill and President Trump signed it on September 2, keeping agencies funded through December 11.
When is the next funding deadline?
December 11, 2026, after the midterm elections.