Last Chance for Congress: Four Weeks Left to Prevent Historic Government Shutdown Before Funding Deadline

By Jim Mishler | Wednesday, January 7, 2026

Congress has four weeks to work out government funding before the current spending authority expires January 30, setting up another high-stakes push to avert a shutdown. Lawmakers returned to Washington this week, facing a compressed timeline to pass full-year appropriations bills. If they fail, Congress may have to approve another short-term funding extension or trigger a shutdown just months after the last funding lapse—the longest in U.S. history.

Funding the government requires passage of 12 appropriations bills. Three were approved last fall as part of a deal to end the previous shutdown, while funding for the remaining agencies was temporarily extended at levels last set in March 2024. Negotiations on several of the remaining bills have yet to be completed between the House and Senate.

Rep. Tom Cole, R-Okla., and Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, chairs of the House and Senate Appropriations committees, said in late December they agreed on an overall spending target for the remaining bills, though they did not disclose a dollar figure. “This pathway forward aligns with President Donald Trump’s clear direction to rein in runaway, beltway-driven spending,” Cole said. “We will now begin expeditiously drafting the remaining nine full-year bills to ensure we are ready to complete our work in January.”

Lawmakers released three bipartisan funding bills this week covering the departments of Commerce, the Interior, and Justice, along with agencies overseeing energy, water, and the environment. House leaders plan to vote on the package soon, though some conservatives have raised concerns. The remaining six bills—including funding for the departments of Health and Human Services, Labor, and War—are expected to be more difficult.

Fiscal conservatives have pressed to keep spending at or below last year’s levels. “I believe that we should begin to control our federal deficit and runaway federal debt by keeping this year’s discretionary spending level at or below last year’s level,” said Rep. Andy Harris, R-Md., a senior member of the Appropriations Committee.

Any funding deal must also clear the Senate with at least 60 votes. Republicans hold a 53-47 majority, requiring support from some Democrats. Sen. Patty Murray of Washington, the top Democrat on the Senate Appropriations Committee, criticized a recently released funding bill for the Department of Homeland Security, calling it “partisan” and pledging to oppose what she described as “out-of-control” operations at the department.

Disagreements over spending and legislative strategy have repeatedly delayed appropriations work in recent years, increasing the likelihood Congress may again rely on a temporary funding extension rather than completing all bills before the deadline.