Senate CR Would Fund Government Through Dec. 11, Collins Says

A continuing resolution extending current spending levels into late fall delays but does not resolve the underlying appropriations disputes that have persisted across multiple fiscal cycles.

Senate Appropriations Committee Chair Susan Collins (R-Maine) announced that chamber leaders are advancing a bipartisan continuing resolution that would fund most federal government operations at current spending levels through December 11, 2026, according to reporting by the New York Post citing Collins directly. The vote is targeted for after the Senate returns from its five-week recess, which began in late July.

The proposed CR includes at least one spending increase above current levels: the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children, commonly known as WIC, would receive additional funding under the agreement, per the same New York Post report. The specific dollar amount of the WIC funding increase was not disclosed in available public reporting; the full text of the continuing resolution, once introduced, would be the authoritative source for that figure.

A continuing resolution rather than a full-year appropriations bill means federal agencies would operate under spending caps carried forward from the prior fiscal year for the programs held at flat funding. Congress has relied on CRs to avoid shutdowns in multiple recent fiscal years. The Congressional Budget Office's baseline projections and agency operating plans filed with the Office of Management and Budget would reflect the operational impact of flat-funded operations through December 11.

The bipartisan framing of the deal reflects coordination between Collins, the Republican committee chair, and Democratic counterparts, though the specific vote counts and named co-sponsors were not detailed in available public records as of August 3, 2026. Senate floor scheduling and whip counts, which would be reflected in the Congressional Record upon a vote, remain pending given the recess timeline.

What remains unknown: the full legislative text of the CR, the precise WIC funding increase amount, which programs if any are excluded from the flat-funding formula, and whether the House has indicated it will take up the same measure. The introduced bill text, once filed, will be publicly available at Congress.gov and would answer each of those questions.