Update on FY 2025 Appropriations

Update, March 17, 2025: On the evening of March 14, hours before the continuing resolution deadline, the Senate passed the FY 2025 spending bill averting a shutdown and funding the government through Sept 30, 2025. The Senate voted 54-46 on the House-passed bill, almost entirely along party lines. Exceptions were Democratic Sen. Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire and Sen. Angus King of Maine who voted “yes,” while Sen. Rand Paul, a Kentucky Republican, voted “no.” The spending bill continues government funding, however, as noted below, it opens the door to the Administration having additional power to decide any and all program funding levels. The bill cuts funding for nondefense programs and services by $13 billion to fiscal year 2024 enacted levels, including eliminating Community Project Funding (earmarks) and specific Department of Labor programs noted in the blog below.  The Senate reached a compromise on the spending cuts to the District of Columbia budget, passing a stand-alone bill late on Friday to allow the District to continue with its 2025 budget without interruption. The stand-alone bill — led by Sens. Susan Collins (R-Maine) and Chris Van Hollen (D-Maryland) — must go back to the House for approval, and it is unclear whether Republicans will support it. 

As a reminder, Congress is conducting multiple, separate budget processes. With FY 2025 now completed, they are shifting to work on annual appropriations for FY 2026, which determines discretionary yearly spending from October 1, 2025 through September 30, 2026; and a reconciliation bill, which affects mandatory spending.

Get updates about education and afterschool policy

On March 11, the House of Representatives passed a full-year continuing resolution (CR) that keeps government funding–with a few exceptions–at FY 2024 levels through the end of FY 2025, September 30, 2025. The government has been operating at FY 2024 levels since the start of FY 2025 on October 1, 2024.

All but one House Democrat voted against the bill. The Democrats objected to language in the bill that could codify the Administration's ability to make program funding-level decisions and cuts. The legislation lacks the congressional guidance that usually accompanies other full-year funding bills.

After voting on the continuing resolution, the House recessed until March 24. If the Senate does not pass the House-passed bill this week, government funding will expire after midnight this Friday, and most of the government will shut down. It is not clear how the Senate will vote. 

Senate Appropriations Ranking Member Murray (D-Wash.) released a fact sheet that outlines her concerns with the continuing resolution. A primary objection is the discretion it gives the Administration to substitute its priorities for funding instead of what Congress designated for FY 2024. The legislative text for the Labor-HHS-Education (LHHS-E) programs does not include program-level funding for many programs, leaving the possibility that the Administration may not provide funding for those programs. This opens the door for the administration to potentially withhold funding from a program and/or allocate that funding to a different program without getting permission from Congress. While this could impact a range of federal education programs, it likely would not impact 21st CCLC, Title I, Title IV Part A, or Full Service Community Schools, as those programs have their funding specified in the previous LHHS-E spending bill that is being continued. The CR, therefore, should allow state education agencies to move ahead with 21st CCLC grant competitions to fund afterschool programs for the coming 2025-2026 school year.

The continuing resolution includes several specific cuts for education and education-related programs. For instance, it eliminates  a range of Community Project Funding (otherwise known as earmarks) funded in FY 2024, including $202 million in higher education earmarks and $88 million in K-12 education earmarks. The bill also cuts funding for the Department of Labor job training, including $107 million of funding for the Employment and Training Administration’s Demonstration and Pilot projects, which appears to eliminate funding for the Career Pathways for Youth program that supports out-of-school-time providers offering youth workforce development.

Look for an update later this week as the Senate considers the legislation and the funding deadline of midnight on March 14 approaches.