Trump Signs Short-Term Funding Bill H.R. 6500, Keeping Government Funded Through Dec. 11

President Donald Trump signed H.R. 6500 into law Wednesday, putting in place a short-term funding measure that will keep the federal government operating through Dec. 11 and avoid a funding lapse when the new fiscal year begins Oct. 1.

The White House announced the action in a release headlined, “Congressional Bill H.R. 6500 Signed into Law.” The measure, titled the “Continuing Appropriations and Extensions Act, 2027,” is a continuing resolution, or CR — a temporary spending bill Congress uses when it has not finished the regular annual appropriations process.

The new law funds federal agencies for fiscal year 2027 at fiscal year 2026 rates and under fiscal year 2026 conditions for continuing projects and activities. It is not a full-year spending package and does not settle broader budget decisions for the year.

Under the law, the stopgap funding runs until the earliest of three events: Congress enacts the relevant full-year fiscal 2027 appropriations law, enacts funding for a specific project or activity, or reaches Dec. 11, 2026.

That timing matters because the federal government’s 2027 fiscal year starts Oct. 1. Without regular appropriations or a CR in place by then, many agencies would face a partial shutdown or other funding lapse.

The measure cleared Congress with broad bipartisan support. The Senate passed it Aug. 8 by a 90-6 roll-call vote, with one senator voting present and three not voting. The House then agreed to the Senate amendment and passed the bill Sept. 1 by a 370-48 vote.

Beyond keeping agencies funded, the law also temporarily extends a range of authorities through Dec. 11, including surface transportation programs and certain Department of Veterans Affairs authorities. It also includes language allowing civilian personnel compensation to be apportioned in a way intended to help agencies avoid furloughs during the CR period and maintain continuity of operations.

Continuing resolutions are routine stopgap measures, but they generally preserve existing spending levels rather than resolving disputes over longer-term funding. In this case, Congress and the White House used the measure to push the next major funding deadline into December instead of confronting a shutdown threat at the start of the fiscal year.

The Dec. 11 expiration date also places the next funding deadline after the November 2026 midterm elections. House Appropriations Committee Chairman Tom Cole, R-Okla., said of the measure, according to Reuters and Stars & Stripes, “This will give Congress time to get past the November elections.”

Unless Congress passes full-year appropriations bills before then — or another short-term extension — federal funding questions will return by that December deadline.