.

Duration of Continuing Resolutions in Recent
Years

Robert Keith
Specialist in American National Government
August 3, 2009
Congressional Research Service
7-5700
www.crs.gov
RL32614
CRS Report for Congress
P
repared for Members and Committees of Congress

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Duration of Continuing Resolutions in Recent Years

Summary
Continuing appropriations acts, commonly known as continuing resolutions, have been an
integral component of the annual appropriations process for decades. Whenever action on one or
more of the regular appropriations acts for a fiscal year is incomplete as the end of a
congressional session nears, one issue that arises is the appropriate duration of any period for
which continuing resolutions will be used.
Continuing resolutions may have a relatively short duration in the expectation that action on the
regular appropriations acts will be concluded within several days or weeks. Alternatively,
continuing resolutions may have a longer duration to postpone final action on appropriations
decisions until after elections or into the beginning of the next congressional session. Finally, a
continuing resolution may provide funding for the remainder of the fiscal year.
The duration of a continuing resolution refers to the period for which continuing appropriations
are made available for the use of agencies. (Legislative provisions, as opposed to funding
provisions, contained in a continuing resolution may remain in effect for a longer period, even as
permanent law.) The period ends either upon enactment of the applicable regular appropriations
act or on an expiration date specified in the continuing resolution, whichever occurs first.
Over the past half century, the timing patterns for congressional action on regular appropriations
acts have varied considerably, but tardy enactment has been a recurring problem. During the 58-
year period covering FY1952-FY2009, all of the regular appropriations acts were enacted on time
in only four instances (FY1977, FY1989, FY1995, and FY1997). No continuing resolutions were
enacted for three of these fiscal years, but continuing resolutions were enacted for FY1977 to
fund certain unauthorized programs whose funding had been dropped from the regular
appropriations acts. Further, no continuing resolutions were enacted for FY1953 even though all
but one of the regular appropriations were enacted late.
Full-year continuing resolutions provide funding for one or more of the regular appropriations
acts for the remainder of the fiscal year. While Congress has employed full-year continuing
resolutions on many occasions, it has not done so consistently over time. For each of the 11 fiscal
years covering FY1978-FY1988, Congress enacted a full-year continuing resolution. Three years
later, Congress enacted another full-year continuing resolution, for FY1992. Most recently, a full-
year continuing resolution was enacted for FY2007.
During the past 12 fiscal years (FY1998-FY2009), Congress provided funding under continuing
resolutions for an average each year of nearly four months (114 days). The period for which
continuing appropriations were provided in these 12 years ranged from 21 days to 365 days. On
average, each of the 77 continuing resolutions enacted during this period lasted for about 18 days.
This report will be updated as developments warrant.

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Duration of Continuing Resolutions in Recent Years

Contents
Features of Continuing Resolutions ............................................................................................. 1
Persistent Need for Continuing Resolutions................................................................................. 3
Use of Full-Year Continuing Resolutions..................................................................................... 3
Recent Congressional Practices (FY1998-FY2009) ..................................................................... 6

Figures
Figure 1. Duration of Continuing Resolutions: FY1998-FY2009 ................................................. 8

Tables
Table 1. Full-Year Continuing Resolutions: FY1978-FY2009 ...................................................... 5
Table 2. Number and Duration of Continuing Resolutions: FY1998-FY2009............................... 6
Table 3. Detailed Information on Continuing Resolutions: FY1998-FY2009................................ 9

Contacts
Author Contact Information ...................................................................................................... 11

Congressional Research Service

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Duration of Continuing Resolutions in Recent Years

ontinuing appropriations acts, commonly known as continuing resolutions, have been an
integral component of the annual appropriations process for decades. Whenever action on
C the regular appropriations acts for a fiscal year is incomplete as the end of a congressional
session nears, one issue that arises is the most appropriate duration of any period for which
continuing resolutions will be used.
Continuing resolutions may have a relatively short duration in the expectation that action on the
regular appropriations acts will be concluded within several days or weeks. Alternatively,
continuing resolutions may have a longer duration to postpone final action on appropriations
decisions until after elections or into the beginning of the next congressional session. Finally, a
continuing resolution may provide funding for the remainder of the fiscal year.
This report provides information on congressional practices with respect to the duration of
continuing resolutions, including the use of full-year measures, and focuses particularly on the
period covering FY1998-FY2009.
Features of Continuing Resolutions
The routine activities of most federal agencies are funded by means of annual appropriations
provided in one or more of the regular appropriations acts.1 When action on the regular
appropriations acts is delayed, Congress turns to one or more continuing appropriations acts to
provide stop-gap funding.2 In the absence of regular appropriations, the failure to enact
continuing appropriations in a timely manner results in a funding gap.3 Funding gaps usually
require that affected federal agencies shut down and furlough many of their employees.4
Continuing appropriations acts commonly are referred to as continuing resolutions (or CRs)
because usually they provide continuing appropriations in the form of a joint resolution rather
than a bill. Occasionally, however, continuing appropriations are provided in bill form.
In most of the years in which continuing resolutions have been used, a series of two or more have
been enacted into law. Continuing resolutions may be designated by their order (e.g., first
continuing resolution, second continuing resolution, and so on) or, after the initial continuing
resolution has been enacted, designated merely as a further continuing resolution.
The duration of a continuing resolution refers to the period for which continuing appropriations
are made available for the use of agencies. (Legislative provisions, as opposed to funding
provisions, contained in a continuing resolution may remain in effect for a longer period, even as
permanent law.) The period ends either upon enactment of the applicable regular appropriations

1 The number of regular appropriations acts varied between 11 and 14 during the past half century, but was fixed at 13 for the
period covering FY1968-FY2005. Realignment of the House and Senate Appropriations subcommittees at the beginning of the
109th Congress reduced the number of regular appropriations acts, beginning with FY2006, to 11; further realignment at the
beginning of the 110th Congress changed the number to 12, beginning with FY2008.
2 For general information, see CRS Report RL30343, Continuing Resolutions: Latest Action and Brief Overview of
Recent Practices
, by Sandy Streeter.
3 Additional information on this topic is provided in CRS Report RS20348, Federal Funding Gaps: A Brief Overview,
by Robert Keith.
4 Exceptions are made under law so that activities for certain authorized purposes, such as protecting property and the
safety of human life, may continue during a funding gap.
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Duration of Continuing Resolutions in Recent Years

act or on an expiration date specified in the continuing resolution, whichever occurs first. The
duration of a continuing resolution may vary for different agencies covered thereunder as an
agency’s regular appropriations act is enacted and its coverage under the continuing resolution
ceases. In addition, a continuing resolution may contain an expiration date for one or more
agencies or programs that differs from the one that applies generally to the covered agencies and
programs.
Section 107 of P.L. 108-84 (117 Stat. 1043), the first continuing resolution for FY2004 (which
began on October 1, 2003), set the duration of the measure at 31 days:
Sec. 107. Unless otherwise provided for in this joint resolution or in the applicable
appropriations Act, appropriations and funds made available and authority granted pursuant
to this joint resolution shall be available until (a) enactment into law of an appropriation for
any project or activity provided for in this joint resolution, or (b) the enactment into law of
the applicable appropriations Act by both Houses without any provision for such project or
activity, or (c) October 31, 2003, whichever first occurs.
Oftentimes, subsequent continuing resolutions simply will replace the expiration date in the
preceding continuing resolution with a new one. For example, Section 1 of the second continuing
resolution for FY2004, P.L. 108-104 (117 Stat. 1200), stated that “Public Law 108-84 is amended
by striking the date specified in Section 107(c) and inserting ‘November 7, 2003’.” This action
extended the duration of the preceding continuing resolution by seven days.
Based upon their duration, continuing resolutions may be classified as either partial-year or full-
year measures. Partial-year continuing resolutions provide funding for periods usually measured
in days or weeks (but sometimes months), while full-year continuing resolutions provide funding
through September 30 of the next congressional session, the last day of the fiscal year.
By enacting a series of partial-year continuing resolutions, Congress secures increments of time
for itself to complete action on some or all of the remaining regular appropriations acts before
ending the congressional session. The duration of the continuing resolutions may be shortened,
sometimes to a single day, to keep pressure on legislators to conclude their business, or may be
lengthened to weeks to accommodate lengthy negotiations or congressional recesses. In some
cases, continuing resolutions have carried over into the next session when Congress wanted to
postpone making difficult political or policy decisions. Finally, when it does not seem likely that
one or more of the regular appropriations acts for a fiscal year will be enacted separately, a full-
year continuing resolution may be used to complete legislative action.
Continuing resolutions usually fund activities under a formula-type approach that provides
spending at a restricted level, such as “at a rate for operations not exceeding the current rate” (i.e.,
generally equivalent to the total amount of appropriations provided for the prior fiscal year). The
amount of funding available for particular activities often is increased when the regular
appropriations act subsequently is enacted. Congress is not bound by these conventions in
determining funding levels, however, and there have been several variations in practice in
continuing resolutions over the years.
In addition, continuing resolutions generally do not allow new activities to be initiated. Instead,
funding usually is available only for activities conducted during the past year, and existing
conditions and limitations on program activity are retained.
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Duration of Continuing Resolutions in Recent Years

Persistent Need for Continuing Resolutions
Over the past half century, the timing patterns for congressional action on regular appropriations
acts have varied considerably, but tardy enactment has been a recurring problem. During the 58-
year period covering FY1952-FY2009, all of the regular appropriations acts were enacted on time
in only four instances (FY1977, FY1989, FY1995, and FY1997). No continuing resolutions were
enacted for three of these fiscal years, but continuing resolutions were enacted for FY1977 to
fund certain unauthorized programs whose funding had been dropped from the regular
appropriations acts. Further, no continuing resolutions were enacted for FY1953 even though all
but one of the regular appropriations were enacted late.5
In an effort to reduce the reliance on continuing resolutions, the Congressional Budget Act of
1974 lengthened the time available for Congress to act on annual appropriations measures by
moving the start of the fiscal year back three months, from July 1 to October 1.6 Procedures under
the act first were implemented fully for FY1977. During the preceding 25 fiscal years, covering
FY1952-FY1976, Congress did not once enact all of the regular appropriations acts on time. As a
result, one or more continuing resolutions were enacted each year during this period, except for
FY1953.7
The change made by the 1974 act in the start of the fiscal year yielded immediate results—all 13
of the regular appropriations acts for FY1977 were enacted on time. (Despite this achievement,
two continuing resolutions were enacted to fund certain unauthorized programs that had been
excluded from the regular appropriations acts.) The initial success was short-lived, and
congressional reliance on continuing resolutions has persisted in the ensuing years.
After FY1977, all of the regular appropriations acts were enacted on time in only three other
instances—for FY1989, FY1995, and FY1997. Consequently, one or more continuing resolutions
were needed each year during this period, except for these three fiscal years.
In most years, more than one continuing resolution was needed as Congress worked to complete
action on the regular appropriations acts. The number of continuing resolutions enacted for a
fiscal year during the period covering FY1977-FY2008 ranged from zero to 21. On average,
about five continuing resolutions were enacted each year during this interval.
Use of Full-Year Continuing Resolutions
Full-year continuing resolutions provide funding for one or more of the regular appropriations
acts for the remainder of the fiscal year (i.e., through June 30 for FY1976 and prior years, and
through September 30 for FY1977 and subsequent years). They represent a determination by

5 Section 1414 of P.L. 82-547 (66 Stat. 661) made regular appropriations enacted late available as of July 1, 1952 (the
first day of FY1953) and ratified any obligations incurred before their enactment.
6 Section 501 (88 Stat. 321) of P.L. 93-344; July 12, 1974. This section later was replaced by the Federal Credit Reform
Act of 1990, but the start of the fiscal year remains October 1 (see 31 U.S.C. 1102).
7 Although regular appropriations measures for FY1953 were enacted into law after the start of the fiscal year on July
1, 1952, no continuing appropriations were provided. Section 1414 of P.L. 82-547 (July 15, 1952), a supplemental
appropriations measure for FY1953, resolved the legalities arising from the tardy enactment of appropriations for that
year.
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Duration of Continuing Resolutions in Recent Years

Congress to abandon any further efforts to enact separately any unfinished regular appropriations
acts for the fiscal year, and to bring the annual appropriations process for that year to a close
(except for the later consideration of supplemental appropriations acts).
While Congress has employed full-year continuing resolutions on many occasions, it has not done
so consistently over time. Prior to the full implementation of the 1974 Congressional Budget Act
for FY1977, full-year continuing resolutions were used periodically. Full-year continuing
resolutions, for example, were enacted into law for four of the six preceding fiscal years
(FY1971, FY1973, FY1975, and FY1976).8
Following the successful completion of action on the regular appropriations acts for FY1977,
Congress returned to the use of full-year continuing resolutions for more than a decade. For each
of the 11 fiscal years following FY1977, covering FY1978-FY1988, Congress enacted a full-year
continuing resolution. Three years later, Congress enacted another full-year continuing resolution,
for FY1992. Most recently, a full-year continuing resolution was enacted for FY2007.
Full-year continuing resolutions may provide appropriations in different ways, including (1) by
formulaic provisions (e.g., “at a rate for operations not in excess of the current rate or the rate
provided in the budget estimate, whichever is lower”), in which the amounts available for
individual projects and activities must be determined by comparing two or more alternatives; (2)
by incorporating the full text of the applicable regular appropriations acts (including
incorporation by cross-reference to other measures), thereby obviating the need to make any
funding determinations; or (3) by a combination of the two.
From a functional perspective, full-year continuing resolutions that do not include any formulaic
provisions, but instead provide appropriations using the full text of acts (including by cross-
reference), may be regarded by some as omnibus appropriations acts rather than continuing
resolutions, even if they are entitled an act “making continuing appropriations” or “making
further continuing appropriations.”
Table 1 identifies the 13 full-year continuing resolutions enacted for the period covering FY1977-
FY2009. Seven of the measures included at least one formulaic funding provision, while the
remaining six did not.
Nine of the 13 full-year continuing resolutions during this period were enacted in the first quarter
of the fiscal year—three in October, two in November, and four in December. The four remaining
measures, however, were enacted during the following session, between February 15 and June 5.
As Table 1 shows, full-year continuing resolutions enacted during the first five years of this
period were relatively short measures, ranging in length from one to four pages in the Statutes-at-
Large
. Beginning with FY1983 and extending through FY1988, however, the measures became
much lengthier, ranging in length from 19 to 451 pages (averaging 244 pages).
The greater page length of full-year continuing resolutions enacted for the period covering
FY1983-FY1988 may be explained by two factors. First, full-year continuing resolutions enacted
prior to FY1983 generally established funding levels by a formulaic reference to pending regular

8 The full-year continuing resolution for FY1976, P.L. 94-254, provided funding through the end of the fiscal year
(June 30, 1976) as well as through the end of a “transition quarter” (September 30, 1976) made necessary by the change
in the start of the fiscal year from July 1 to October 1.
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Duration of Continuing Resolutions in Recent Years

appropriations acts. With regard to a specific appropriations act, for example, funding levels may
have been keyed to the lesser of the amounts provided in the House-passed or Senate-passed
versions of the act. Beginning with FY1983, however, Congress largely abandoned the use of
formulaic references to establish funding levels. Instead, the full text of some or all of the covered
regular appropriations acts usually was incorporated into the full-year continuing resolution,
thereby increasing its length considerably.
Secondly, the number of regular appropriations acts covered by full-year continuing resolutions
increased significantly during the FY1983-FY1988 period. For the period covering FY1978-
FY1982, the number of regular appropriations acts covered by continuing resolutions for the full
fiscal year ranged from one to five (averaging 2.4). Beginning with FY1983 and extending
through FY1988, the number of covered acts ranged from four to 13 (averaging 8.7).
Table 1. Full-Year Continuing Resolutions: FY1978-FY2009
Public
Page
Included
Fiscal Year
Law
Enactment
Length
Formulaic
Date
Number
(Statutes-
Funding
at-Large)
Provision(s)?
1978 95-205
12-09-1977
2
No
1979 95-482
10-18-1978
4
No
1980 96-123
11-20-1979
4
Yes
1981 97-12
06-05-1981
2a Yes
1982 97-161
03-31-1982
1
Yes
1983 97-377
12-21-1982
95
Yes
1984 98-151
11-14-1983
19
Yes
1985 98-473
10-12-1984
363
No
1986 99-190
12-19-1985
142
No
1987 99-591
10-30-1986
391
No
1988 100-202
12-22-1987
451
No
1989 [none]



1990 [none]



1991 [none]



1992 102-266
04-01-1992
8
Yes
1993-2006 [none]
— — —
2007 110-5
02-15-2007
53
Yes
2008 [none]



2009 [none]



Source: Prepared by the Congressional Research Service.
a. Full-year continuing appropriations for FY1981 were provided as part of a supplemental appropriations act
(H.R. 3512); see Title IV, “Further Continuing Appropriations,” at 95 Stat. 96-97.
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Duration of Continuing Resolutions in Recent Years

Recent Congressional Practices (FY1998-FY2009)
Continuing resolutions have been an important element of the annual appropriations process
during the last 12 fiscal years, covering FY1998-FY2009. (FY1997 was the most recent year for
which no continuing resolutions were needed.) As shown in Table 2, a total of 77 continuing
resolutions have been enacted into law during the period. While the average number of such
measures enacted per year has been about 6 (6.4), the actual number enacted has ranged from two
measures (for FY2009) to 21 (for FY2001).
Table 2. Number and Duration of Continuing Resolutions: FY1998-FY2009
Fiscal
Number of
Duration
Average
Final
Year
Acts
in Days
Duration for
Expiration
a
Each Act
Date
1998 6
57
9.5
11-26-1997
1999 6
21
3.5
10-21-1998
2000 7
63
9.0
12-02-1999
2001 21
82
3.9
12-21-2000
2002 8
102
12.8
01-10-2002
2003 8
143
17.9
02-20-2003
2004 5b 123 24.6
01-31-2004
2005 3
69
23.0
12-08-2004
2006 3
92
30.7
12-31-2005
2007 4
365
91.3
09-30-2007
2008 4
92
23.0
12-31-2007
2009
2
162
81.0
03-11-2009
Total
77
1,371


Annual Average
6.4
114
17.8

Source: Prepared by the Congressional Research Service.
a. Duration is measured, in the case of the initial continuing resolution for a fiscal year, from the first day of
the year (October 1). For subsequent continuing resolutions for a fiscal year, duration is measured from the
expiration date of the preceding continuing resolution. As of the date of this writing, action on
appropriations acts for FY2008 is not complete.
b. The fifth continuing resolution for FY2004 did not change the expiration date of January 31, 2004,
established in the preceding continuing resolution.
During these last 12 years, Congress provided funding by such means for an average each year of
nearly four months (114 days). Taking into account all of the continuing resolutions enacted for
each year, the period for which continuing appropriations were provided ranged from 21 days to
365 days. On average, each of the 77 continuing resolutions enacted lasted for about 18 days.9
One full-year continuing resolution was used during this period, covering FY2007.

9 The fifth continuing resolution enacted for FY2004, P.L. 108-185, did not change the expiration date of January 31,
2004, set in the preceding continuing resolution.
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Duration of Continuing Resolutions in Recent Years

In the first four instances, the expiration date in the final continuing resolution was set in the first
quarter of the fiscal year, on a date occurring between October 21 and December 21. The
expiration date in the final continuing resolution for the next three fiscal years, however, was set
in the following session on a date occurring between January 10 and February 20. The expiration
dates for the next two fiscal years shown in the table, FY2005 and FY2006, and for the final
fiscal year, FY2008, were in the first quarter of the fiscal year (between December 8 and
December 31).
The final continuing resolution for FY2007 provided funding through the remainder of the fiscal
year, with an expiration date of September 30, 2007. Finally, the first continuing resolution for
FY2009 carried an expiration date of March 6, 2009, which was extended for another five days
by a second continuing resolution.
Figure 1 presents a representation of both the number and duration of continuing resolutions for
FY1998-FY2009. As the figure shows, there is no significant correlation between these two
variables.
Six continuing resolutions were enacted for both FY1998 and FY1999, but the same number of
measures lasted for a period of 57 days for FY1998 and only 21 days for FY1999. The largest
number of continuing resolutions enacted for a single fiscal year during this period—21 for
FY2001—covered a period lasting 82 days, at an average duration of 3.9 days per act; the
smallest number enacted—two so far for FY2009—covered 162 days, at an average duration of
81 days per act.
Figure 1 also shows considerable mix in the use of shorter-term and longer-term continuing
resolutions for a single fiscal year. For FY2001, for example, 21 continuing resolutions covered
the first 82 days of the fiscal year. The first 25 days were covered by a series of four continuing
resolutions lasting between five and eight days each. The next 10 days, a period of intense
legislative negotiations leading up to the national elections on November 7, 2000, were covered
by a series of 10 one-day continuing resolutions.
The next 31 days were covered by only two continuing resolutions, the first lasting 10 days and
the second lasting 21 days. The first of these two continuing resolutions was enacted into law on
November 4, the Saturday before the election, and extended through November 14, the second
day of a lame-duck session. The second continuing resolution was enacted into law on November
15; it expired on December 5, 10 days before the lame-duck session ended.
The remaining five continuing resolutions, which ranged in duration from one to six days,
covered the remainder of the lame-duck session and several days beyond (as the final
appropriations legislation passed by Congress was processed for the President’s approval).
Table 3 provides more detailed information on the number and duration of continuing
appropriations acts enacted for FY1998-FY2009.
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Figure 1. Duration of Continuing Resolutions: FY1998-FY2009
57
1999
21
63
2001
82
ar
102
e
Y 2003
143
123
Fiscal 2005
69
92
2007
365
92
2009
162
0
100
200
300
400
Number of Days

Note: Each segment of a bar for a fiscal year represents the duration of one continuing resolution. The left-most segment represents the first continuing resolution,
effective beginning on October 1 (the start of the fiscal year). Duration is measured, in the case of the initial continuing resolution for a fiscal year, from the first day of the
year through the expiration date. For subsequent continuing resolutions for a fiscal year, duration is measured from the expiration date of the preceding continuing
resolution.
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Duration of Continuing Resolutions in Recent Years

Table 3. Detailed Information on Continuing Resolutions: FY1998-FY2009
Fiscal
Public
Statutes-at-Large
Enactment
Expiration
Duration
Year
Law No.
Citation
Date
Date
in Daysa
1998
105-46
111 Stat. 1153-1158
09-30-97
10-23-97
23
105-64
111 Stat. 1343
10-23-97
11-07-97
15
105-68
111 Stat. 1453
11-07-97
11-09-97
2
105-69
111 Stat. 1454
11-09-97
11-10-97
1
105-71
111 Stat. 1456
11-10-97
11-14-97
4
105-84
111 Stat. 1628
11-14-97
11-26-97
12
1999
105-240
112 Stat. 1566-1571
09-25-98
10-09-98
9
105-249
112 Stat. 1868
10-09-98
10-12-98
3
105-254
112 Stat. 1888
10-12-98
10-14-98
2
105-257
112 Stat. 1901
10-14-98
10-16-98
2
105-260
112 Stat. 1919
10-16-98
10-20-98
4
105-273
112 Stat. 2418
10-20-98
10-21-98
1
2000
106-62
113 Stat. 505-509
09-30-99
10-21-99
21
106-75
113 Stat. 1125
10-21-99
10-29-99
8
106-85
113 Stat. 1297
10-29-99
11-05-99
7
106-88
113 Stat. 1304
11-05-99
11-10-99
5
106-94
113 Stat. 1311
11-10-99
11-17-99
7
106-105
113 Stat. 1484
11-18-99
11-18-99
1
106-106
113 Stat. 1485
11-19-99
12-02-99
14
2001
106-275
114 Stat. 808-811
09-29-00
10-06-00
6
106-282
114 Stat. 866
10-06-00
10-14-00
8
106-306
114 Stat. 1073
10-13-00
10-20-00
6
106-344
114 Stat. 1318
10-20-00
10-25-00
5
106-358
114 Stat. 1397
10-26-00
10-26-00
1
106-359
114 Stat. 1398
10-26-00
10-27-00
1
106-381
114 Stat. 1450
10-27-00
10-28-00
1
106-388
114 Stat. 1550
10-28-00
10-29-00
1
106-389
114 Stat. 1551
10-29-00
10-30-00
1
106-401
114 Stat. 1676
10-30-00
10-31-00
1
106-403
114 Stat. 1741
11-01-00
11-01-00
1
106-416
114 Stat. 1811
11-01-00
11-02-00
1
106-426
114 Stat. 1897
11-03-00
11-03-00
1
106-427
114 Stat. 1898
11-04-00
11-04-00
1
106-428
114 Stat. 1899
11-04-00
11-14-00
10
106-520
114 Stat. 2436-2437
11-15-00
12-05-00
21
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Duration of Continuing Resolutions in Recent Years

Fiscal
Public
Statutes-at-Large
Enactment
Expiration
Duration
Year
Law No.
Citation
Date
Date
in Daysa
106-537
114 Stat. 2562
12-05-00
12-07-00
2
106-539
114 Stat. 2570
12-07-00
12-08-00
1
106-540
114 Stat. 2571
12-08-00
12-11-00
3
106-542
114 Stat. 2713
12-11-00
12-15-00
4
106-543
114 Stat. 2714
12-15-00
12-21-00
6
2002
107-44
115 Stat. 253-257
09-28-01
10-16-01
16
107-48
115 Stat. 261
10-12-01
10-23-01
7
107-53
115 Stat. 269
10-22-01
10-31-01
8
107-58
115 Stat. 406
10-31-01
11-16-01
16
107-70
115 Stat. 596
11-17-01
12-07-01
21
107-79
115 Stat. 809
12-07-01
12-15-01
8
107-83
115 Stat. 822
12-15-01
12-21-01
6
107-97
115 Stat. 960
12-21-01
01-10-02
20
2003
107-229
116 Stat. 1465-1468
09-30-02
10-04-02
4
107-235
116 Stat. 1482
10-04-02
10-11-02
7
107-240
116 Stat. 1492-1495
10-11-02
10-18-02
7
107-244
116 Stat. 1503
10-18-02
11-22-02
35
107-294
116 Stat. 2062-2063
11-23-02
01-11-03
50
108-2
117 Stat. 5-6
01-10-03
01-31-03
20
108-4
117 Stat. 8
01-31-03
02-07-03
7
108-5
117 Stat. 9
02-07-03
02-20-03
13
2004
108-84
117 Stat. 1042-1047
09-30-03
10-31-03
31
108-104
117 Stat. 1200
10-31-03
11-07-03
7
108-107
117 Stat. 1240
11-07-03
11-21-03
14
108-135
117 Stat. 1391
11-22-03
01-31-04
71
108-185
117 Stat. 2684
12-16-03
[n/a]b —
2005
108-309
118 Stat. 1137-1143
09-30-04
11-20-04
51
108-416
118 Stat. 2338
11-21-04
12-03-04
13
108-434
118 Stat. 2614
12-03-04
12-08-04
5
2006
109-77
119 Stat. 2037-2042
09-30-05
11-18-05
49
109-105
119 Stat. 2287
11-19-05
12-17-05
29
109-128
119 Stat. 2549
12-18-05
12-31-05
14
2007
109-289c
120 Stat. 1311-1316
09-29-06
11-17-06
48
109-369
120 Stat. 2642
11-17-06
12-08-06
21
109-383
120 Stat. 2678
12-09-06
02-15-07
69
110-5
121 Stat. 8-60
02-15-07
09-30-07
227
Congressional Research Service
10

.
Duration of Continuing Resolutions in Recent Years

Fiscal
Public
Statutes-at-Large
Enactment
Expiration
Duration
Year
Law No.
Citation
Date
Date
in Daysa
2008
110-92
121 Stat. 989-998
09-29-07
11-16-07
47
110-116d
121 Stat. 1341-1344
11-13-07
12-14-07
28
110-137
121 Stat. 1454
12-14-07
12-21-07
7
110-149
121 Stat. 1819
12-21-07
12-31-07
10
2009
110-329
122 Stat. 3574-3716
09-30-08
03-06-09
157
111-6
123 Stat. 522
03-06-09
03-11-09
5
Sources: Prepared by the Congressional Research Service using data from: (1) the Legislative Information
System; and (2) Congressional Research Service, Appropriations Status Tables (various fiscal years), available at:
http://www.crs.gov/products/appropriations/appover.shtml.
a. Duration is measured, in the case of the initial continuing resolution for a fiscal year, from the first day of
the year (October 1) through the expiration date. For subsequent continuing resolutions for a fiscal year,
duration is measured from the expiration date of the preceding continuing resolution.
b. P.L. 108-185 contained provisions affecting funding levels for two specified programs, but did not contain a
provision affecting the expiration date of January 31, 2004, established in the preceding continuing
resolution (P.L. 108-135).
c. Continuing appropriations for FY2007 were provided by Division B of P.L. 109-289, the Defense
Appropriations Act for FY2007.
d. Continuing appropriations for FY2008 were provided by Division B of P.L. 110-116, the Defense
Appropriations Act for FY2008.

Author Contact Information

Robert Keith

Specialist in American National Government
rkeith@crs.loc.gov, 7-8659




Congressional Research Service
11