WASHINGTON — A deal to extend the government funding deadline through the end of the 2025 fiscal year will require near unanimity from Republicans to avoid a shutdown this week.
And most members — even those who are typically opposed to short-term funding packages — say they are ready to support the proposed stopgap measure. Doing so would allow lawmakers to avoid a lapse in federal funding, which is scheduled to take place at midnight on March 14.
Republican leadership unveiled text of the CR on Saturday, extending current government funding levels through the end of September. The proposal includes a moderate increase in defense spending while decreasing nondefense spending measures by roughly $13 billion.
Those alterations leave an approximate total of $892.5 billion allocated toward defense spending and roughly $708 billion for nondefense spending.
The proposal, being referred to as a “yearlong CR” by Republicans, has the endorsement of President Donald Trump and congressional party leaders — and could receive a vote in the House as early as Tuesday, according to Speaker Mike Johnson.
The vote will be a major test of unity for House Republicans, who have typically struggled to pass a CR along party lines and have long relied on Democrats to get major funding legislation over the finish line.
But this time around, House Democratic leadership say they won’t provide any assistance — leaving it to Republicans to convince typical holdouts to hold their noses and vote for a CR. And most appear to be getting on board.
“I don’t like CRs. What’s changed is what the DOGE commission is coming up with on things (and) the American people are seeing where their tax dollars are going,” Rep. Ralph Norman, R-S.C., who has typically voted against CRs, said on Tuesday. “So that’s why I’ll be voting for it.”
The real test will be in the Senate where Republicans must rely on at least seven Democrats to cross party lines to secure the 60-vote majority threshold. At least one Republican, Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., has already said he won’t vote for a CR, which would require an additional Democrat to pass the funding bill.
Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, plans to support the CR, a source told the Deseret News, so long as the final legislation does not add provisions intended to rein in DOGE or the Trump administration. That comes in response to demands from Democrats to assure Trump will allocate the funds as they are approved by Congress.
That’s a major win for Republican leadership if Lee follows through. The senior Utah senator voted against the last CR in December.
Sen. John Curtis, R-Utah, has not yet decided how he’ll vote on the major legislation and likely won’t make an announcement until bill text is released — which could be as early as this weekend. Curtis also voted against the December CR, arguing there were not enough spending cuts.
Those concerns will likely dictate his decision again, sources told the Deseret News.
Similar to Lee, several other Republicans who have previously voted against any form of a CR say they will support this one — arguing a government shutdown would be detrimental to Trump’s progress.
“It’s a different time in history,” Norman said. “I don’t want to stop the momentum this president has and shut the government down now — although in the past, I’ve been for shutting the government down.”
Norman, along with other members of the conservative House Freedom Caucus, have been vocally supportive of shutting down the government if appropriations are not handled in the routine process. However, many of those same members are acknowledging a shutdown would only hinder Trump and DOGE from continuing its work to slash funding and root out fraud and abuse.
“Based on the word we’re being given from the White House — that they will continue to do the work, that the president supports it and wants it — I’m comfortable,” Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas, said on Tuesday.
Trump met with a key group of holdouts at the White House on Wednesday to lay out his plans for the yearlong CR in an attempt to get them on board. Members emerged from the meeting signaling a willingness to support the measure.
“The group of conservatives in the office with him all want to support the president’s agenda, and we’re going to work toward getting that continuing resolution in the form where we can pass it,” House Freedom Caucus Chairman Andy Harris, R-Md., said after the meeting.
Still, Republican leaders face a tricky math situation. Any spending legislation will require 217 votes to pass if all members are present and voting. That means Republicans, with 218 members in their current majority, can only afford one defector. Any more than that, and the bill is tanked.
At least one House Republican, Rep. Thomas Massie, has said he will vote against a CR. That gives Johnson no wiggle room, and could be enough to sink the bill if another GOP lawmaker decides to join him.
Despite being responsible for helping to avoid government shutdowns over the last two years, House Democratic leadership has vowed not to pitch in this time around.
Instead, Democrats are accusing Republicans of walking away from bipartisan funding negotiations to advance a bill that would empower Trump and multibillionaire Elon Musk to continue slashing current government spending levels.
“The top Democrat on the Appropriations Committee, Rosa DeLauro, remains ready to negotiate a meaningful bipartisan spending agreement that puts working people first,” House Democratic leadership sent in a “Dear Colleague” letter to rank-and-file members on Friday. “However, Republicans have decided to introduce a partisan continuing resolution that threatens to cut funding for health care, nutritional assistance and veterans benefits through the end of the current fiscal year. That is not acceptable.”
Democrats have demanded provisions stating Trump must allocate the funds that are approved by Congress, decrying attempts by the new administration and DOGE to freeze appropriations and block them from going toward federal agencies.
Republicans have balked at these demands, claiming they infringe upon Trump’s authority as president to spend government funds as he pleases.
Now, GOP leaders are accusing Democrats of seeking to shut down the government — something that could be disastrous for vulnerable Democratic lawmakers seeking reelection next year, particularly in the Senate.
“It looked like (Democrats) were trying to engineer a shutdown of the government, which is terribly irresponsible. We’re not going to do that,” Johnson told Fox News on Friday. “We will be running a clean CR next week. And what that will do is allow us time, allow the White House, the administration, to continue the DOGE efforts finding all these extraordinary levels of savings and waste, fraud and abuse.”
Sen. John Fetterman, D-Pa., has said he would vote for a CR, criticizing the idea of allowing the government to shut down. Other Senate Democrats are not so convinced — but may get on board to avoid attacks from their GOP counterparts.
