Why It Matters

Federal agencies generally must stop work after appropriations expire, while legally recognized exceptions can preserve activities tied to the safety of human life or protection of property. A new Congressional Research Service report, “Past Government Shutdowns: Key Resources,” records that the fiscal year 2026 government-wide funding gap lasted 42 full days, from October 1, 2025, through November 12, 2025, within the scope it identifies as the longest such gap to date.

Past shutdowns have affected federal contracts, employee pay, veterans’ benefits, national parks, and small-business access to capital.

The Big Picture

The Antideficiency Act, cited in the report as 31 U.S.C. §§1341 et seq., supplies the legal framework for agency operations during funding lapses. Foundational shutdown-related opinions issued by Attorney General Benjamin Civiletti in 1980 and 1981 helped shape the framework the report catalogs. CRS distinguishes a funding gap from a shutdown, noting that a lapse may end before agencies have enough time to close affected projects and activities.

The fiscal year 2014 shutdown began October 1, 2013, lasted 16 full days, and ended when P.L. 113-46 was enacted.

The Bottom Line

The report says that it is difficult to predict what might happen in the event of a future shutdown because agencies and officials may exercise discretion in interpreting the laws and circumstances may differ over time. That uncertainty is especially relevant to contract management, where agencies may be barred from exercising options, increasing costs through contract modifications, or obligating additional funds on incrementally funded cost-reimbursement agreements. The report also notes that new contracts or obligations on existing contracts may remain permissible when the conditions described in its executive-branch guidance are satisfied. H.R. 3210 and P.L. 113-39 are identified with the Pay Our Military Act, H.R. 2677 and H.R. 2706 would have addressed the operation of national parks during shutdowns through donated state employee services, and S.Res. 526 concerns withholding senators’ pay if a government shutdown occurs.

A House Appropriations Committee hearing titled “Funding Lapses: Analyzing Shutdown Reform” was held July 22, while a Senate Rules Committee hearing on S.Res. 526 occurred December 11, 2025.

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