Full-Year Continuing Resolutions: Frequently Asked Questions

Full-Year Continuing Resolutions: Frequently

Asked Questions

November 19, 2025

Congressional Research Service

https://crsreports.congress.gov

R48731

Full-Year Continuing Resolutions: Frequently Asked Questions

Contents

Introduction ..................................................................................................................................... 1

Frequently Asked Questions ............................................................................................................ 1

How often have full-year CRs been enacted? ........................................................................... 1

How have full-year CRs provided funding? ............................................................................. 2

Have full-year CRs provided the same funding as the previous fiscal year? ............................ 3

What anomalies and other provisions have been included in full-year CRs? ........................... 4

Have full-year CRs been accompanied by Appropriations Committee reports or other

explanatory text? .................................................................................................................... 5

What has differentiated full-year CRs from interim CRs? ........................................................ 6

How have full-year CRs addressed Community Project Funding and Congressionally

Directed Spending? ................................................................................................................ 7

Does a full-year CR mean the appropriations process is over? ................................................. 7

How are agency funds apportioned during a full-year CR compared to an interim CR?.......... 8

How do agencies allocate funds within an appropriations account during a full-year

CR? ........................................................................................................................................ 9

What types of congressional notification requirements have applied during a full-year

CR? ...................................................................................................................................... 10

What are the limitations on the obligation of funds during a full-year CR? ............................ 11

Tables

Table 1. Full-Year Continuing Resolutions (CRs) Enacted Since 2000 .......................................... 2

Contacts

Author Information......................................................................................................................... 11

Full-Year Continuing Resolutions: Frequently Asked Questions

Introduction

The term appropriations process refers to Congress’s annual development and consideration of

appropriations legislation for each federal fiscal year running from October 1 through September

30.1 Spending controlled through the appropriations process—known as discretionary spending—

generally consists of funding for the operations of most federal agencies and most of the

programs, projects, and activities each carries out. Appropriations legislation also provides

funding for certain programs controlled by laws other than appropriations acts, known as

“appropriated entitlements” or “appropriated mandatories.”

The appropriations process is designed around the development and consideration of 12 regular

appropriations bills for each fiscal year. When some or all regular appropriations bills are not

enacted before the October 1 start of the fiscal year, or at a later point in the fiscal year, Congress

may enact continuing appropriations acts—often referred to as “continuing resolutions,” or

CRs—to provide temporary funding until appropriations for the full fiscal year are enacted.2

For most fiscal years, Congress has completed the appropriations process by enacting the 12

regular appropriations acts either separately or as part of consolidated appropriations measures

(often referred to as “omnibus” or “minibus” appropriations measures). On occasion, however,

Congress has provided appropriations for some or all of the accounts included in the regular bills

by enacting a CR lasting through the end of the fiscal year. These measures are often referred to

as “full-year CRs” to distinguish them from short-term (or “interim”) CRs that cover only part of

a fiscal year.

This report addresses several frequently asked questions pertaining to full-year CRs, including

those related to their development, content, and execution by federal agencies.

Frequently Asked Questions

How often have full-year CRs been enacted?

Since FY1977, 16 measures containing full-year CRs for at least one of the regular appropriations

bills have been signed into law.3 For all other fiscal years over this period, Congress provided

1 For more on the appropriations process, see CRS Report R47106, The Appropriations Process: A Brief Overview, by

James V. Saturno and Megan S. Lynch.

2 For more on continuing resolutions, see CRS Report R46595, Continuing Resolutions: Overview of Components and

Practices, coordinated by James V. Saturno.

When federal agencies and programs lack funding after the expiration of regular appropriations or a CR, the agencies

and programs experience a “funding gap.” If no new appropriations are enacted in time to continue operations for such

agencies or programs, then the agencies are legally required to cease operations (known as a “government shutdown”),

except in certain situations when the law authorizes continued activities. For more on funding gaps, see CRS Report

RS20348, Federal Funding Gaps: A Brief Overview, by James V. Saturno. For more on government shutdowns, see

CRS Report RL34680, Shutdown of the Federal Government: Causes, Processes, and Effects, coordinated by Clinton

T. Brass.

3 The Congressional Budget Act of 1974 (Titles I-IX of P.L. 93-344) changed the federal fiscal year from July 1

through June 30 to October 1 through September 30. FY1977 was the first fiscal year for which this change took effect.

Each full-year CR enacted since FY1977 provided funding for a different fiscal year.

For more on full-year CRs enacted historically, see the section of CRS Report R46595, Continuing Resolutions:

Overview of Components and Practices, coordinated by James V. Saturno, titled “Features of Full-Year CRs Since

FY1977.”

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regular, full-year appropriations through the enactment of the regular appropriations bills, either

separately or through omnibus or minibus appropriations measures.

Since 2000, four measures containing full-year CRs for at least one of the regular appropriations

bills have been enacted, each of which is listed in Table 1. Prior to these measures, the most

recently enacted full-year CR was for FY1992.4

Table 1. Full-Year Continuing Resolutions (CRs) Enacted Since 2000

Fiscal

Year

Number of Regular

Appropriations Bills

Covered by CR

Title and P.L. Number

Date Enacted

2007

Revised Continuing Appropriations Resolution,

2007 (P.L. 110-5)

February 15, 2007

9 of 11a

2011

Full-Year Continuing Appropriations Act, 2011

(Division B of P.L. 112-10)b

April 15, 2011

11 of 12

2013

Further Continuing Appropriations Act, 2013

(Division F of P.L. 113-6)c

March 26, 2013

7 of 12

2025

Full-Year Continuing Appropriations Act, 2025

(Division A of P.L. 119-4)d

March 15, 2025

12 of 12

Source: Table 3 of CRS Report R46595, Continuing Resolutions: Overview of Components and Practices, coordinated

by James V. Saturno, titled “Appropriations Acts Containing Full-Year Continuing Resolutions (CRs): FY1977FY2025.”

a. P.L. 110-5 was enacted prior to the reorganization of the House and Senate Appropriations Committees at

the beginning of the 110th Congress, so there were 11 regular appropriations bills for FY2007. For more,

see CRS Report RL31572, Appropriations Subcommittee Structure: History of Changes from 1920 to 2025, by

James V. Saturno. The Department of Defense Appropriations Act, 2007 (P.L. 109-289, signed into law on

September 29, 2006), and the Department of Homeland Security Appropriations Act, 2007 (P.L. 109-295,

signed into law on October 4, 2006), were enacted separately.

b. Division A of the act included the Department of Defense Appropriations Act, 2011, and Division C of the

act included the Scholarships for Opportunity and Results Act.

c. Divisions A-E of the act each included a regular appropriations act for FY2013. Division G of the act

(“Other Matters”) included additional provisions mostly related to the application and execution of

appropriations for FY2013.

d. Division B (“Health”) and Division C (“Other Matters”) included legislative provisions related to various

matters. For more on Division A of the act, see CRS Report R48517, Section-by-Section Summary of the FullYear Continuing Appropriations Act, 2025 (Division A of P.L. 119-4), coordinated by Drew C. Aherne.

How have full-year CRs provided funding?

There are no rules or laws requiring full-year CRs to have a certain form or to include certain

content. Congressional practices related to full-year CRs have varied over time, as has the general

approach to providing funding for agencies, programs, projects, and activities in such measures.

Despite this historical variation, the full-year CRs enacted for FY2007, FY2011, FY2013, and

FY2025 each took a similar general approach to funding. They each established a general funding

formula by referencing previously enacted appropriations acts to be “continued” under the

measure—known as the CR’s coverage—and a funding level at which those programs, projects,

and activities would be funded for the new fiscal year. They each also established various

deviations from or exceptions to this general formula for specific accounts or activities. (See

4 P.L. 102-266.

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“Have full-year CRs provided the same funding as the previous fiscal year?”). In each case, the

coverage consisted of regular (and, on occasion, supplemental) appropriations acts from the

previous fiscal year, and the funding level was generally based on the amounts, authorities, and

conditions provided for in those acts.5 In other words, the full-year CR enacted for each of these

fiscal years generally continued the funding decisions made in referenced appropriations acts

from the previous fiscal year, with certain deviations and exceptions. For mandatory programs

funded through covered appropriations acts, each measure generally provided the amounts

necessary, for the full fiscal year, to maintain program levels under current law.

In contrast, earlier full-year CRs took different general approaches to funding. Some defined the

coverage and funding level by referencing measures other than appropriations acts from the

previous fiscal year, such as unenacted appropriations bills for the current fiscal year6 or certain

authorizing laws.7 Other measures referred to as full-year CRs incorporated the full text of a

regular appropriations bill (or bills) into the measure.8 On one occasion, Congress enacted a fullyear CR simply by extending the expiration date of an existing interim CR through September 30

without any additional provisions.9

Have full-year CRs provided the same funding as the previous

fiscal year?

Although full-year CRs enacted in recent decades have generally continued the funding levels,

authorities, and conditions established in specified appropriations acts from the previous fiscal

year, such measures have typically included various provisions making changes for the new fiscal

year. As a result, the extent to which a full-year CR provides the same funding as the previous

fiscal year generally depends on the number and nature of provisions in the measure establishing

such changes.

In recent practice, most changes to the general funding formulas established by full-year CRs

have come in the form of provisions known as “anomalies.” An anomaly is a provision in a CR

that establishes exceptions to or deviations from the general funding provided by the CR for

5 For example, Section 1101 of the FY2025 full-year CR provided “Such amounts as may be necessary, at the level

specified in subsection (c) and under the authority and conditions provided in applicable appropriations Acts for fiscal

year 2024.” The “level specified in subsection (c)” was “the amounts appropriated in the appropriations Acts referred to

in such subsection [subsection (a)], including transfers and obligation limitations.” Section 1101 also listed the 12

regular appropriations acts enacted for FY2024 (Divisions A-F of P.L. 118-42 and Divisions A-F of P.L. 118-47) as the

appropriations acts covered under the measure.

6 For example, P.L. 98-473, an act “making continuing appropriations for the fiscal year 1985,” provided, for the full

fiscal year, “Such sums as may be necessary for programs, projects, and activities provided for in the Agriculture, Rural

Development and Related Agencies Appropriation Act, 1985 (H.R. 5743), to the extent and in the manner provided for

in the conference report and joint explanatory statement of the Committee of Conference (House Report Numbered 981071), filed in the House of Representatives on September 25, 1984, as if such Act had been enacted into law.”

7 For example, P.L. 95-482, an act “making continuing appropriations for the fiscal year 1979,” provided, for the full

fiscal year, “Such amounts as may be necessary” for continuing activities under several specified authorizing laws at a

rate of operations “not in excess of the current rate.” The act then listed several authorizing laws under which activities

would continue under the CR.

8 For example, P.L. 99-190, an act “making further continuing appropriations for the fiscal year 1986,” included the full

text of several of the regular appropriations bills for FY1986, including the Department of Defense Appropriations Act,

1986; the Department of Transportation and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 1986; and the Foreign Assistance

and Related Programs Appropriations Act, 1986.

9 P.L. 97-161, an act “making further continuing appropriations for the fiscal year 1982,” amended a previously enacted

short-term CR for FY1982 (P.L. 97-92) to change the expiration date from March 31, 1982, to September 30, 1982. No

other provisions were included in the act.

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certain accounts or activities. Full-year CRs enacted in recent decades have included numerous

anomalies changing the funding compared to the previous fiscal year in different ways and to

various degrees. (See “What anomalies and other provisions have been included in full-year

CRs?”)

In addition to anomalies, full-year CRs enacted in recent decades have provided for deviations to

funding from the previous fiscal year in several other ways as well. For example, provisions

establishing the coverage of full-year CRs have on occasion provided for such changes. These

provisions have included language (1) excluding from coverage under the CR certain provisions

in covered appropriations acts from the previous year, (2) including in the coverage certain

provisions in other acts that otherwise would not have applied under the CR, and (3) changing

funding levels for certain accounts compared to the previous fiscal year.10

It has also been common practice in recent decades for full-year CRs to make certain changes

related to funding for Community Project Funding (CPF) and Congressionally Directed Spending

(CDS) from the previous fiscal year. (See “How have full-year CRs addressed Community

Project Funding and Congressionally Directed Spending?”)

What anomalies and other provisions have been included in fullyear CRs?

There is no limit to the number of anomalies Congress can include in a full-year CR, nor are there

formal restrictions on the form or content of such provisions. That being said, most anomalies

included in full-year CRs in recent decades have been related to agency-, account-, or activityspecific issues, needs, or priorities that would otherwise not have been addressed by the general

terms of the full-year CR. Aside from anomalies, full-year CRs have also typically included

additional legislative provisions most often related to extending or amending existing provisions

of law. Some common functions of anomalies and other legislative provisions in recent full-year

CRs have included:

•

•

•

•

•

changing funding levels for certain accounts compared to the previous fiscal

year;

providing new appropriations for accounts or purposes that may or may not have

received funding in the previous fiscal year;

granting or limiting agency flexibility with regard to how to spend or allocate

certain funds, such as establishing reprogramming guidelines or providing

transfer authority;

establishing, altering, or repealing limitations, requirements, terms, and/or

conditions related to funding provided in the bill; and

establishing, amending, extending, or repealing authorizations related to certain

agencies, programs, or activities.11

10 For example, Section 1101 of the FY2025 full-year CR specified that it continued the funding levels, authorities, and

conditions provided for in the Energy and Water Development and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2024

(Division D of P.L. 118-42), “except sections 307, 311, and 312”; the Department of Homeland Security

Appropriations Act, 2024 (Division C of P.L. 118-47), “including sections 102 through 105 of title I of division G of

P.L. 118-47”; and the Financial Services and General Government Appropriations Act, 2024 (Division B of P.L. 11847), “except section 635 shall be applied by substituting ‘$400,000,000’ for ‘$387,500,000.’”

11 For specific examples of these types of provisions, see the section of CRS Report R48517, Section-by-Section

Summary of the Full-Year Continuing Appropriations Act, 2025 (Division A of P.L. 119-4), coordinated by Drew C.

Aherne titled “Agency-, Account-, and Program-Specific Provisions.”

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It has been common for the President to submit a list of requested anomalies and other provisions

to Congress ahead of an expected full-year CR. These lists have typically included a description

of, or proposed bill text for, the requested anomaly, as well as a justification for why the

Administration is requesting the provision.12 Congress can accept, reject, modify, or take no

action on the anomalies requested by the President during the development of a full-year CR.

Congress may also develop additional anomalies not requested by the President for inclusion in a

full-year CR.

In recent practice, anomalies have been organized into separate titles (or chapters) of full-year

CRs based on the regular appropriations bill they pertain to.13

Have full-year CRs been accompanied by Appropriations

Committee reports or other explanatory text?

Congressional reports accompany regular appropriations bills when they are reported by the

House and Senate Appropriations Committees.14 Additional explanatory text may also accompany

the regular bills at other stages in the legislative process in the form of a joint explanatory

statement (JES) accompanying a conference report on the measure or an explanatory statement

filed in the Congressional Record. These reports and other forms of explanatory text supplement

the regular appropriations bills by providing additional information on the measure and,

potentially, guidance and directives to agencies. Report language itself is generally not legally

binding in the same manner as statutory language in appropriations acts, but Congress has

historically expected agencies to comply with such language. Additionally, Congress may give

statutory effect to certain report language by referencing such language in the legislative text of

an appropriations measure (known as “incorporation by reference”).

Unlike regular appropriations acts, full-year CRs enacted in recent decades have not been

accompanied by Appropriations Committee reports or other forms of explanatory text.

Explanatory text incorporated by reference in covered appropriations acts from the previous fiscal

year would have generally continued to apply under the CR unless specified otherwise, however.

Recent full-year CRs have also on occasion incorporated certain additional report language by

reference, thus giving it statutory effect.15 In addition, existing explanatory text—such as

explanatory text accompanying covered appropriations acts from the previous fiscal year or

unenacted appropriations acts for the current fiscal year—may have still provided some indication

of congressional intent with regard to the funding provided by the CRs in these years. The extent

12 For example, on February 27, 2025, it was reported that the Trump Administration submitted a list of requested

anomalies and other provisions to Congress for potential inclusion in a full-year CR for FY2025. The list of anomaly

requests from the Administration for this CR can be found in Aidan Quigley, “Trump White House Submits CR

‘Anomalies’ Request to Congress,” Congressional Quarterly, February 27, 2025, https://plus.cq.com/doc/news8184930?0.

13 For example, the FY2025 full-year CR (Division A of P.L. 119-4) included 13 titles (Titles I-XIII). Titles II-XIII

each respectively included anomalies and other provisions specific to one of the regular appropriations bills.

14 For more on appropriations report language, see CRS Report R44124, Appropriations Report Language: Overview of

Development and Components, by Drew C. Aherne.

15 For example, the full-year CR for FY2007 (P.L. 110-5) required that certain grants issued pursuant to amounts made

available for the Environmental Protection Agency’s “State and Tribal Assistance Grants” account be made “in

accordance with the terms and conditions specified for such grants in the joint explanatory statement of the managers in

Conference Report 109-188.” Conference Report 109-188 (S.Rept. 109-188) was the conference report accompanying

the Department of Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2006 (P.L. 109-54).

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to which agencies adhered to such language, or such language was still consistent with

congressional intent for the funding provided by the CR, is unclear, however.16

Despite recent practice, Congress is not prohibited from developing explanatory text to

accompany a full-year CR. Prior to the FY2007 full-year CR, explanatory text accompanied such

measures on multiple occasions and at various stages in the legislative process. This has included

House and Senate Appropriations Committee reports that accompanied full-year CRs upon being

reported by either committee.17 It has also included explanatory text at the conference committee

stage in the form of a JES accompanying a conference report on such measures.18 In some cases,

the explanatory text accompanying full-year CRs has included guidance and directives to federal

agencies, detailed funding allocations, and statements of congressional intent.19

What has differentiated full-year CRs from interim CRs?

The defining characteristic differentiating full-year and interim (or short-term) CRs is their

duration. An interim CR provides funding for a temporary period that expires prior to the end of

the fiscal year. A full-year CR, on the other hand, provides funding through the end of the fiscal

year on September 30.

Full-year CRs enacted in recent decades have differed from interim CRs enacted over the same

period in several other ways. Most of the features that have distinguished these two types of

measures stem from the different general purpose each has served in the appropriations process

for a given fiscal year. Namely, interim CRs have generally been intended to serve as temporary

funding measures while Congress completes action on regular appropriations bills, whereas fullyear CRs have typically marked the end of congressional consideration of regular appropriations

bills for the fiscal year. (See “Does a full-year CR mean the appropriations process is over?”)

One such difference has been the inclusion of certain provisions in full-year CRs that have not

typically been included in interim CRs and that reflect their full-year duration. In recent practice,

this has included provisions establishing multiyear and no-year availability for certain

appropriations, addressing funding for CPF or CDS from the previous fiscal year, providing

advance appropriations for future fiscal years, and requiring agencies to submit spending or

16 For example, the potential applicability of such explanatory text may have been affected in instances where the

allocations, directives, and/or guidance they included were inconsistent with the funding provided by the full-year CR.

In addition, the lack of additional explanatory text accompanying full-year CRs clarifying congressional intent may

have limited the applicability of House and Senate Appropriations Committee reports for the current fiscal year when

they appeared to conflict.

17 For example, see H. Rept. 95-824, H. Rept. 95-1599, S. Rept. 95-1317, H. Rept. 96-609, S. Rept. 97-67, H. Rept. 97465, H. Rept. 97-959, H. Rept. 98-1030, S. Rept. 98-634, H. Rept. 99-403, S. Rept. 99-210, S. Rept. 99-500, H. Rept.

100-415, and S. Rept. 100-238.

18 For example, see H. Rept. 96-646, H. Rept. 97-124, H. Rept. 97-980, H. Rept. 98-540, H. Rept. 98-1159, H. Rept.

99-450, H. Rept. 99-1005, and H. Rept. 100-498.

19 The JES of the conference report accompanying H.J.Res. 413 (H. Rept. 98-540), a full-year CR for FY1984 (P.L. 98151) included all of these elements. For example, the JES directed the General Services Administration “to study the

use of EPA-certified energy saving devices for use on the motor pool fleet and report back to the House and Senate

Committees on Appropriations with recommendations by January 15, 1984”; required funds for “International

Organizations and Programs” to be made available in amounts consistent with certain allocations; and, with regard to

the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children, stated, “Any action by the Secretary of

Agriculture, the Office of Management and Budget, or the States to spread the $1,060,000,000 appropriated herein

beyond July 10, thereby reducing participation, would be in direct violation of the intent of conferees.”

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operating plans to the Appropriations Committees explaining how they plan to allocate budget

authority within each appropriations account, among others.20

Full-year CRs enacted in recent decades have also omitted certain provisions that are typically

included in interim CRs, specifically those that establish limitations on agency operations.

Because interim CRs are generally meant to serve as temporary funding measures until regular

appropriations bills are enacted, they have typically included provisions that limit agency

operations in ways that generally prevent them from getting ahead of, or limiting the applicability

of, full-year funding decisions Congress may make at a later point.21 Full-year CRs have not

included such provisions due to the expectation that they may represent final decisions by

Congress on funding for the fiscal year.

How have full-year CRs addressed Community Project Funding

and Congressionally Directed Spending?

Full-year CRs enacted in recent decades have not included funding for new CPF or CDS (also

known as “earmarks”) requested by Members for the current fiscal year.22 They have also

included language discontinuing funding in the current fiscal year for earmarks funded in the

previous fiscal year.23 The full-year CRs for FY2007, FY2011, and FY2025 each established that

earmarks from the previous fiscal year would have no effect under the CR.24 In many cases, these

measures also included provisions reducing funding levels for certain accounts for the current

fiscal year by the amount provided to that account for earmarks in the previous fiscal year.25

Does a full-year CR mean the appropriations process is over?

The enactment of a full-year CR does not prevent Congress from considering appropriations

legislation for that fiscal year at a later point. In practice, however, full-year CRs have typically

20 For more on these provisions in the FY2025 full-year CR, see the sections of CRS Report R48517, Section-by-

Section Summary of the Full-Year Continuing Appropriations Act, 2025 (Division A of P.L. 119-4), titled “Section

1103—Multi-Year and No-Year (‘X’-Year Availability),” “Section 1111—Exclusion of Funding for FY2024

Earmarks,” “Section 1112—Advance Appropriations,” “Section 1113—Agency Submission of Spending, Expenditure,

or Operating Plans,” and “Section 1114—OMB Reports on Obligations.”

21 For more on these limitations, see the section of CRS Report R46595, Continuing Resolutions: Overview of

Components and Practices titled “Purpose for Funds and Restrictions on New Activities.”

22 Clause 9(e) of House Rule XXI defines earmark as “a provision or report language included primarily at the request

of a Member, Delegate, Resident Commissioner, or Senator providing, authorizing or recommending a specific amount

of discretionary budget authority for a contract, loan, loan guarantee, grant, loan authority, or other expenditure with or

to an entity, or targeted to a specific State, locality or Congressional district, other than through a statutory or

administrative formula-driven or competitive award process.”

Clause 5(a) of Senate rule XLIV defines earmark as “a provision or report language included primarily at the request of

a Senator providing, authorizing, or recommending a specific amount of discretionary budget authority, credit

authority, or other spending authority for a contract, loan, loan guarantee, grant, loan authority, or other expenditure

with or to an entity, or targeted to a specific State, locality or Congressional district, other than through a statutory or

administrative formula-driven or competitive award process.”

23 The inclusion of this language does not affect the availability of appropriations for such earmarks provided in

appropriations acts from the previous fiscal year.

24 The full-year CR for FY2013 did not include such a provision, as there was a moratorium on earmarks at the time.

For more on the earmark moratorium, see CRS Report R45429, Lifting the Earmark Moratorium: Frequently Asked

Questions, by Megan S. Lynch. This provision was included in Section 1111 of the FY2025 full-year CR (Section 1111

of Division A of P.L. 119-4).

25 For example, Title II of the FY2007 full-year CR (P.L. 110-5) was titled “Elimination of Earmarks, Adjustments in

Funding, and Other Provisions.”

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marked the end of congressional consideration of regular appropriations bills for the fiscal year.

For example, in each of the four most recent fiscal years for which full-year CRs were enacted—

FY2007, FY2011, FY2013, and FY2025—neither the House nor the Senate subsequently

considered any regular appropriations bills for that fiscal year.26

A full-year CR also does not preclude the subsequent consideration of supplemental

appropriations measures for that fiscal year. In 2007, for instance, Congress passed a

supplemental appropriations measure for FY2007 in May after the enactment of the FY2007 fullyear CR in February.27

How are agency funds apportioned during a full-year CR compared

to an interim CR?

Annual appropriations and other budgetary legislation provide agencies with budget authority,

which allows agencies to enter into obligations. With certain exceptions, the Antideficiency Act

requires that appropriated funds be apportioned (i.e., subdivided)—by time period, function, or

program—to prevent agencies from exhausting their appropriated funds prematurely.28 The

Office of Management and Budget (OMB) apportions funds appropriated to executive agencies.29

OMB apportions funding provided by a full-year CR using the same process as would be used for

budget authority provided by regular appropriations.

By contrast, after enactment of an interim CR, OMB provides detailed directions to executive

agencies on the availability of funds and how to proceed with budget execution, typically in a

bulletin.30 The bulletin includes announcement of an “automatic apportionment” of funds that will

be made available for obligation as a percentage of the annualized amount provided by the CR.

Under a typical OMB bulletin, part of the annualized amount is apportioned and made available

for obligation. Funds are usually either:

26 Historically, regular appropriations bills have on occasion been enacted after the enactment of a full-year CR

covering that bill in full or in part. For example, a full-year CR for FY1984 (P.L. 98-151) covering the Department of

Defense Appropriations Act was enacted on November 14, 1983. Subsequently, the Department of Defense

Appropriations Act, 1984 (P.L. 98-212) was signed into law on December 8, 1983. In these instances, and unless

specified otherwise, the enacted regular appropriations bill superseded the provisions of the CR for those purposes.

27 The U.S. Troop Readiness, Veterans’ Care, Katrina Recovery, and Iraq Accountability Appropriations Act, 2007

(H.R. 2206, signed into law as P.L. 110-28 on May 25, 2007).

28 The collection of statutes commonly referred to as the Antideficiency Act have been codified in multiple sections of

Title 31 of the U.S. Code (31 U.S.C. §§1341-1342, 1349-1350, 1511-1519). Selected government entities are exempted

from the apportionment requirements of the Antideficiency Act, including the Senate, the House of Representatives,

congressional committees, and the Office of the Architect of the Capitol (31 U.S.C. §1511(b)(3)). For more information

about apportionment, see CRS Report R47019, The Executive Budget Process: An Overview, by Dominick A.

Fiorentino and Taylor N. Riccard.

29 Under Title 31, Section 1513(b)(1), of the U.S. Code, the President is statutorily responsible for apportioning funds

for executive branch agencies. This responsibility has been delegated to OMB under Executive Order 6166, as

amended. For the legislative and judicial branches, apportionments are made by the officials who maintain

administrative control of each appropriations account.

30 For example, see OMB, Apportionment of the Continuing Resolution(s) for Fiscal Year 2025, Bulletin No. 24-03,

September 26, 2024, https://bidenwhitehouse.archives.gov/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/OMB-Bulletin-No.-24-03Apportionment-of-the-Continuing-Resolutions-for-Fiscal-Year-2025-Final-Combined.pdf. This bulletin directed

agencies how to operate during the interim CR for the period October 1, 2024, through December 20, 2024, as provided

for by P.L. 118-83 (138 Stat. 1524). Current bulletins may be found at https://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/informationresources/guidance/bulletins/.

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•

•

•

automatically apportioned in proportion to the time period of the fiscal year

covered by the CR (pro-rata);

apportioned by account in amounts corresponding to CR anomalies (e.g.,

accounts that may spend at a higher or lower pace than the annualized rate); or

apportioned according to other account-specific circumstances.

A 30-day CR might, therefore, provide 30 days’ worth of funding, derived from a certain

annualized amount that is set by formula based on the previous fiscal year appropriation.31

How do agencies allocate funds within an appropriations account

during a full-year CR?

Reports and other explanatory text accompanying regular appropriations acts may include

additional instructions about the allocation of funds within an appropriations account among one

or more related “programs, projects, or activities” (PPA), which are typically specified as tables

of information.32 These funding directives are generally not legally binding on agencies in the

same way as the statutory text of appropriations acts, but agencies may treat funding directives as

practically binding.33

As stated above (see “Have full-year CRs been accompanied by Appropriations Committee

reports or other explanatory text?”), full-year CRs enacted in recent decades have not been

accompanied by Appropriations Committee reports or other forms of explanatory text. Existing

reports or explanatory text from the prior fiscal year may still provide some indication of

congressional intent for the funding provided by the full-year CR. However, agencies may lack

updated congressional instruction about the allocation of budget authority within an account,

particularly those with anomalies. The House and Senate Appropriations Committees did not

include reports or explanatory text to accompany the FY2025 full-year CR.

A full-year CR, like regular appropriation acts, may instruct agencies to provide the House and

Senate Appropriations Committees with spending plans that explain how agencies plan to allocate

budget authority within each appropriations account during budget execution. For example,

Section 1113 of the FY2025 full-year CR required various agencies and departments funded by

the CR to submit spending, expenditure, or operating plans to the House and Senate

Appropriations Committees no later than 45 days after the enactment of the measure.34 These

plans were required to provide information at the PPA level or, as applicable, greater levels of

detail as required by appropriations acts for FY2024 or the explanatory text accompanying such

acts.35 Agency spending plans submitted to the House and Senate Appropriations Committees

have not typically been made publicly available.

31 This section draws in part from CRS Report RL34700, Interim Continuing Resolutions (CRs): Potential Impacts on

Agency Operations, by Clinton T. Brass.

32 The House and Senate Committees on Appropriations may specify PPAs in report language to provide more detailed

expectations or directions to agencies on the allocation of funding among various activities funded within their

accounts. Specifically, a report may include tables that break down each lump-sum appropriation into allocations for

distinct PPAs. Appropriators may use these tables to establish expectations for agencies’ allocations of funds.

33 For more, see CRS Report R47333, Reporting on Agency Budget Execution: Processes and Case Study Illustration,

by Dominick A. Fiorentino.

34 P.L. 119-4 (March 15, 2025), Division A, Title I, §1113. A list of the agencies and departments required to submit

such plans under this provision is included in Section 1113(c).

35 This section draws in part from CRS Report R48517, Section-by-Section Summary of the Full-Year Continuing

Appropriations Act, 2025 (Division A of P.L. 119-4), coordinated by Drew C. Aherne.

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Since the passage of the FY2025 full-year CR, some Members of Congress have criticized the

content and timeliness of the agency spending plans. In a May 2025 letter to OMB Director

Russell Vought, Representative Rosa DeLauro, ranking member of the House Committee on

Appropriations, and Senator Patty Murray, vice chair of the Senate Committee on Appropriations,

stated that several agency spending plans were not submitted by the statutory deadline and that

some of the submitted plans either did “not provide funding levels for hundreds of specific

programs and activities” or “completely omitted dozens of specific programs and activities.”36

What types of congressional notification requirements have

applied during a full-year CR?

A full-year CR may carry over certain congressional notification requirements from the prior year

appropriation acts as well as establish additional notification requirements. Agencies may be

required to notify Congress prior to (or shortly after) carrying out certain transfers and

reprogramming transactions. Transfers refer to the reallocation of funds between separately

appropriated amounts, and reprogramming refers to the reallocation of funds within an

appropriated amount, such as from one PPA to another.37 Though agencies are typically allowed

to reprogram funds, there are cases in which this ability is restricted without congressional

notification. Oftentimes, restrictions on reprogramming will specifically limit an agency’s ability

to create or eliminate a PPA or to shift funds above a certain dollar amount or threshold. Accountto-account transfers require statutory authorization and also typically require congressional

notification. Often, such requirements involve agencies notifying the relevant House and Senate

Appropriations Committees a certain number of days (often 15, 30, or 45 days) prior to

transferring or reprogramming funds. Within a regular appropriations act, the requirements for

congressional notification of transfer and reprogramming actions are often found in the “General

Provisions” section that is applicable to each department or agency. These reprogramming and

transfer notifications are not typically made publicly available.

Section 1101 of the FY2025 full-year CR provided funding in the same amounts and under the

same authorities and conditions as provided for in appropriations acts enacted for FY2024.38 This

means that transfer authorities and conditions on reprogramming established in such acts for

FY2024—including related notification requirements—continued in effect for FY2025 unless

specified otherwise. The FY2025 full-year CR also included a spending plan reporting

requirement described above (see “How do agencies allocate funds within an appropriations

account during a full-year CR?”). Without report language or explanatory text to set initial PPA

allocations within each account, it is unclear when agencies would consider an action to be a

reallocation from the initial amounts and therefore requiring congressional notification.

36 Rep. Rosa DeLauro, ranking member of the House Committee on Appropriations, and Senator Patty Murray, vice

chair of the Senate Committee on Appropriations, letter to Russell T. Vought, Director of OMB, May 27, 2025,

https://democrats-appropriations.house.gov/sites/evo-subsites/democrats-appropriations.house.gov/files/evo-mediadocument/250527-delauro-murray-fy25-omb-spend-plan-letter.pdf.

37 For more, see CRS Report R47600, Transfer and Reprogramming of Appropriations: An Overview, by Taylor N.

Riccard and Dominick A. Fiorentino.

38 P.L. 119-4 (March 15, 2025), Division A, Title I, §1101. For more, see CRS Report R48517, Section-by-Section

Summary of the Full-Year Continuing Appropriations Act, 2025 (Division A of P.L. 119-4), coordinated by Drew C.

Aherne.

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Full-Year Continuing Resolutions: Frequently Asked Questions

What are the limitations on the obligation of funds during a fullyear CR?

Agencies are generally limited to their prior year’s funding levels under a full-year CR in the

absence of account-specific anomalies. Regular appropriations acts also often include provisions

limiting the use of funds for specified purposes, which may be incorporated into a full-year CR.

For example, Section 1101 of the FY2025 full-year CR provided funding in the same amounts

and under the same authorities and conditions as provided for in appropriations acts enacted for

FY2024. This means that any authorities and conditions established in such acts for FY2024—

such as limitations on the obligation of funds—continued in effect for FY2025 unless specified

otherwise.39 Additionally, Section 1104 of the FY2025 full-year CR prohibited funds appropriated

by the CR from being used for projects and/or activities for which funding was specifically

prohibited in covered FY2024 appropriations acts unless specified otherwise.40

Author Information

Drew C. Aherne

Analyst on Congress and the Legislative Process

Taylor N. Riccard

Analyst in Government Organization and

Management

Dominick A. Fiorentino

Analyst in Government Organization and

Management

Disclaimer

This document was prepared by the Congressional Research Service (CRS). CRS serves as nonpartisan

shared staff to congressional committees and Members of Congress. It operates solely at the behest of and

under the direction of Congress. Information in a CRS Report should not be relied upon for purposes other

than public understanding of information that has been provided by CRS to Members of Congress in

connection with CRS’s institutional role. CRS Reports, as a work of the United States Government, are not

subject to copyright protection in the United States. Any CRS Report may be reproduced and distributed in

its entirety without permission from CRS. However, as a CRS Report may include copyrighted images or

material from a third party, you may need to obtain the permission of the copyright holder if you wish to

copy or otherwise use copyrighted material.

39 P.L. 119-4 (March 15, 2025), Division A, Title I, §1101.

40 P.L. 119-4 (March 15, 2025), Division A, Title I §1104. For more, see CRS Report R48517, Section-by-Section

Summary of the Full-Year Continuing Appropriations Act, 2025 (Division A of P.L. 119-4), coordinated by Drew C.

Aherne.

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