S. 2721 · Where this bill is now
In committee
Introduced in the Senate, Sep 4, 2025
What this bill does
In plain words · AI-written from the official summaryAutomatic funding to prevent government shutdowns
Ever wondered what happens when Congress can't agree on how to spend money by the time a new fiscal year starts. This bill sets up automatic funding to keep the government running at the same level as the previous year if new spending bills haven't been passed. It also limits things like official travel and congressional breaks until Congress finishes approving the actual budget.
How it affects you
This mainly affects Congress and government agencies. For you as a regular person, it means federal services and programs would keep running at current levels even if there's a budget dispute, rather than shutting down. Congress would face restrictions on breaks and side projects until they complete their core job of approving spending.
Read the official summary (Introduced in Senate, Sep 4, 2025)
Prevent Government Shutdowns Act of 2025
This bill provides continuing appropriations to prevent a government shutdown if the appropriations bills for a fiscal year have not been enacted before the fiscal year begins and continuing appropriations are not in effect.
Specifically, the bill provides appropriations at the rate of operations that was provided for the prior fiscal year to continue programs, projects, and activities that were funded in the preceding fiscal year.
The bill also limits official travel, congressional recesses or adjournments, and the consideration of legislation that is unrelated to appropriations after the beginning of a fiscal year if the appropriations process has not been completed.
Written by AI (Claude) using only the official summary by the Congressional Research Service, the Library of Congress’s nonpartisan research staff. It can miss nuance, so check the official summary and the bill text for details.
1st SessionS. 2721
A BILL
Prevent Government Shutdowns Act of 2025
Sponsor: Sen. James Lankford (R-OK) · Introduced Sep 4, 2025 · Economics and Public Finance · 1 version of the text
Sources: Congress.gov actions and votes · bill text from GovInfo · latest official action Sep 4, 2025: “Read twice and referred to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs.”