Sponsors (13)
The bill prevents immediate service and benefit interruptions and clarifies short‑term budget treatment during funding lapses, but it reduces congressional leverage over spending, can raise deficit and accountability risks if used repeatedly, and creates some legal and transparency uncertainties.
Federal agencies and programs funded last year can continue operating automatically for rolling 14-day periods during funding lapses, preventing immediate interruptions to services and operations.
Mandatory and entitlement payments, including Food and Nutrition Act benefits, continue at prior-law rates during a lapse, protecting low-income people and beneficiaries from benefit interruptions.
Treats the new 31 U.S.C. §1311 resources as part‑year continuing appropriations and provides clearer rules for how those funds count toward discretionary limits, reducing baseline inflation and budget scoring uncertainty.
Automatically extending prior-year funding could bypass current-year congressional spending priorities and reduce Congress's leverage to negotiate appropriations.
Routinely using automatic continuing funding during repeated gaps may increase federal outlays during prolonged lapses, raising deficit risk and potential costs to taxpayers.
Allowing agencies to transfer up to 5% between accounts (even with OMB approval) could undermine congressional intent and obscure accountability if not closely monitored.
Based on analysis of 4 sections of legislative text.
Automatically funds previously funded federal programs at prior-year levels in renewable 14-day increments during an appropriations lapse, with limits and exceptions.
Introduced September 23, 2025 by Dustin Johnson · Last progress September 23, 2025
Creates an automatic, short-term funding mechanism that keeps federal programs running at their prior-year funding levels during an appropriations lapse. The law would automatically appropriate the sums necessary to continue programs, projects, and activities for 14-calendar-day periods (renewable for additional 14-day periods) until a new appropriation or continuing resolution is enacted, with specific limits, exceptions, and procedural rules. Continued mandatory and entitlement payments (including Food and Nutrition Act programs) are preserved at prior-law rates; limited intra-agency transfers (with OMB approval) up to 5% are allowed; certain uses are barred; and budgetary treatment under the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act is specified. The rules take effect September 30, 2025.