Ahead of a midnight deadline to avoid a government shutdown, on Friday Congress approved a full-year Continuing Resolution (CR) to fund the federal government through September 30, 2025 – the remainder of Fiscal Year (FY) 2025. The funding measure passed the House and Senate largely along party lines, before being signed into law by the President.
Overall, the CR provides a 1% increase for defense discretionary spending and a 1% cut for non-defense discretionary spending compared to FY24 enacted levels. Notably, funding for the FY25 International Affairs Budget would increase by 1.8% ($1.1 billion). However, there are significant causes for concern surrounding the future of international affairs funding and programs. See below for additional details.
| FY24 Enacted* | FY25 Request* | FY25 House | FY25 Senate | FY25 Full-Year CR | |
| Non-Emergency | $57.5 billion | $63.1 billion | $52.7 billion | $57.5 billion | $58.6 billion |
| Base Emergency | $2.5 billion | $2.8 billion | $0 | $5.9 billion | $2.5 billion |
| Total | $60.0 billion | $65.9 billion | $52.7 billion | $63.4 billion | $61.1 billion |
*Excludes $26.8 billion in emergency funding primarily for Ukraine, Israel, Taiwan, and global humanitarian assistance.
**Reflects CBO’s re-estimate of the Administration’s request.
During consideration of the CR on the Senate floor, four amendments received votes – including one from Senator Rand Paul (R-KY) that would have cut certain USAID accounts by 83% compared to their FY24 enacted levels – including International Disaster Assistance, Global Health Programs, the Economic Support Fund, Development Assistance, USAID Operating Expenses, and the Office of Inspector General. The amendment was rejected on a bipartisan 27-73 vote that split the Senate Republican conference – with just over 50% of Senate Republicans voting in favor of the proposed cuts.
International Affairs Provisions
When it comes to the International Affairs Budget, the CR largely holds funding flat at FY24 enacted levels for most programs and accounts. However, a few areas see cuts – including:
Notably, these reductions are more than offset by the inclusion of fewer and smaller international affairs rescissions in the CR compared to the FY24 enacted spending deal – resulting in the higher International Affairs Budget topline for FY25.
Congressional Intent
The CR explicitly states that the Administration should comply with the Congressional directives, reporting requirements, and instructions included in FY24 spending bills – including the FY24 State-Foreign Operations bill and Joint Explanatory Statement – when determining how to allocate and spend international affairs resources in the CR. However, the Administration could choose to interpret this language to allow for much broader discretion in how it expends funds.
Impoundment
Since taking office, and in line with its Executive Order on Reevaluating and Realigning United States Foreign Aid, the Administration has largely halted the obligation and disbursement of international affairs funding previously appropriated by Congress and has terminated thousands of foreign assistance grants and awards. Although a federal judge recently reaffirmed that the impoundment – or withholding – of Congressionally appropriated funds – is illegal and unconstitutional, the Administration appears to continue to view such action as a viable way to reduce spending. As a result, there is significant uncertainty surrounding the extent to which International Affairs Budget funds included in the CR will be spent.
Rescissions
The Administration is reportedly considering submitting to Congress a formal request to rescind – or permanently cancel – funding that had previously been approved by Congress for a variety of agencies and programs, including for the State Department and USAID. By utilizing the process outlined in the Impoundment Control Act of 1974 or attaching them to budget reconciliation legislation, potential rescissions would be considered on an expedited basis and require only a simple majority of both the House and Senate to be enacted into law.
FY26 Budget and Appropriations Process
With FY25 spending finalized, Congress and the Administration are expected to turn to the FY26 budget and appropriations process, while at the same time, Congressional Republicans remain focused on budget reconciliation legislation. The Administration’s budget request – expected as soon as early April – is likely to include deep spending cuts, including for the International Affairs Budget. The House and Senate Appropriations Committees are also expected to begin the process of negotiating subcommittee toplines – also known as 302(b) allocations – and drafting spending bills in the coming months.
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