Congress is preparing to pass a second continuing resolution (CR), as the first stopgap appropriations measure is set to expire on Oct. 31 and little progress has been made toward completing the remaining appropriations bills in the Senate. As the window of opportunity to pass all the appropriations bills individually continues to close, even the once-optimistic head of the Senate appropriations process has stated that Congress will likely have to use an omnibus spending bill to finish the work before the end of 2009.

With the end of the fiscal year quickly approaching on Sept. 30, congressional leaders plan to pass a continuing resolution (CR) to keep government agencies funded through the end of October and allow additional time for appropriations work to continue. Although not a guarantee, the additional time should allow Congress to finish its appropriations work, preventing the need for an omnibus spending bill before the end of the year.