Continuing Resolutions: Overview of
Components and Recent Practices
Jessica Tollestrup
Analyst on Congress and the Legislative Process
August 6, 2012
Congressional Research Service
7-5700
www.crs.gov
R42647
CRS Report for Congress
Pr
epared for Members and Committees of Congress

Continuing Resolutions: Overview of Components and Recent Practices

Summary
Congress uses an annual appropriations process to fund the routine activities of most federal
agencies. This process anticipates the completion of 12 regular appropriations bills to fund these
activities before the beginning of the fiscal year. Over the past half century, the timing of
congressional action on regular appropriations bills has varied considerably, but enactment after
the start of the fiscal year has been a recurring issue. Until regular appropriations for a fiscal year
are enacted, one or more continuing appropriations acts (commonly known as a continuing
resolution or CR) can be used to provide funding for a specified period of time.
Under recent congressional practice, continuing resolutions typically include as many as six main
components. First, CRs provide funding for certain activities, which are typically specified with
reference to prior fiscal year’s appropriations acts. This is referred to in this report as the CRs
coverage. Second, CRs provide budget authority for a specified duration of time. This duration
may be as short as a single day, or as long as the remainder of the fiscal year. Third, CRs typically
provide funds based on an overall funding rate. Fourth, the use of budget authority provided in
the CR is typically prohibited for new activities not funded in the previous fiscal year. Fifth, the
duration and amount of funds in the CR, and purposes for which they may be used for specified
activities, may be adjusted through anomalies. Sixth, legislative provisions, which create, amend,
or extend other laws, have been included in some instances.
Between FY1977 and FY2012, excluding the four fiscal years that all appropriations were
enacted on time, over half of the regular appropriations bills for a fiscal year were enacted on
time in only one instance (FY1978). In all other fiscal years, fewer than six regular appropriations
acts were enacted on or before October 1. In addition, in 11 out of the 36 years during this period,
none of these regular appropriations bills were enacted prior to the start of the fiscal year. Five of
these fiscal years have occurred in the interval since FY2001. For further information, see Table
1.
In the interval since FY1997, the most recent fiscal year that all regular appropriations bills were
completed on time, continuing resolutions have been enacted on average about six times per
fiscal year. During this period, CRs provided funding for an average of four months each fiscal
year. For further information, see Table 2 and Figure 1.
Congress has employed full-year continuing resolutions on a number of occasions. For each of
the 11 fiscal years covering FY1978-FY1988, Congress enacted a full-year CR covering at least
one regular appropriations act. Three years later, Congress enacted another full-year CR, for
FY1992. Most recently, full-year CRs were enacted for FY2007 and FY2011. The budget
authority in these full-year CRs was also provided in different forms. The nine full-year CRs for
FY1980 through FY1984, FY1992, FY2007, and FY2011, included formulaic provisions that
provided funding for at least one of the covered appropriations acts. The full-year CRs for
FY1985 through FY1988, by contrast, did not use formulaic provisions but instead specified
amounts for each account. For further information, see Table 3.
For a list of all continuing resolutions enacted since FY1977, see Table 4 at the end of this report.
This report will be updated after the annual appropriations process for a fiscal year has concluded.

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Continuing Resolutions: Overview of Components and Recent Practices

Contents
Introduction...................................................................................................................................... 1
Main Components of Continuing Resolutions................................................................................. 3
Coverage.................................................................................................................................... 3
Duration..................................................................................................................................... 5
Funding Rate ............................................................................................................................. 6
Purpose for Funds and Restrictions on New Activities ............................................................. 7
Exceptions to Duration, Amount, and Purposes: Anomalies..................................................... 8
Duration............................................................................................................................... 8
Amount................................................................................................................................ 8
Purpose................................................................................................................................ 9
Legislative Provisions ............................................................................................................. 10
The Enactment of Regular Appropriations Bills and Use of Continuing Resolutions,
FY1977-FY2012......................................................................................................................... 11
Duration and Frequency of Continuing Resolutions, FY1998-FY2012 ........................................ 13
Features of Full-Year Continuing Resolutions, FY1977-FY2012 ................................................. 17

Figures
Figure 1. Duration of Continuing Resolutions: FY1998-FY2012 ................................................. 16

Tables
Table 1. The Enactment of Regular Appropriations Bills and Use of Continuing
Resolutions, FY1977-FY2012.................................................................................................... 11
Table 2. Number and Duration of Continuing Resolutions: FY1998-FY2012.............................. 13
Table 3. Full-Year Continuing Resolutions, FY1977-FY2012 ...................................................... 18
Table 4. Number, Page Length, and Duration of Continuing Resolutions: FY1977-
FY2012 ....................................................................................................................................... 19

Contacts
Author Contact Information........................................................................................................... 29
Acknowledgments ......................................................................................................................... 29

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Continuing Resolutions: Overview of Components and Recent Practices

Introduction
Congress uses an annual appropriations process to fund the routine activities of most federal
agencies.1 This process anticipates the enactment of 12 regular appropriations bills to fund these
activities before the beginning of the fiscal year.2 When this process is delayed beyond the start of
the fiscal year, one or more continuing appropriations acts (commonly known as continuing
resolutions or CRs)3 can be used to provide funding until action on regular appropriations is
completed.
Over the past half century, the timing of congressional action on regular appropriations bills has
varied considerably, but their enactment after the start of the fiscal year has been a recurring
issue. During the 25-year period covering FY1952-FY1976, when the fiscal year began on July 1,
at least one regular appropriations bill was enacted after the fiscal year began. At the end of this
period, the start of the fiscal year was moved from July 1 to October 1 by the Congressional
Budget Act of 1974 (P.L. 93-344; 88 Stat. 297).4 When the act was fully implemented for
FY1977, all of the regular appropriations bills for that fiscal year were enacted on time. Since
FY1977, however, all of the regular appropriations bills were enacted before the beginning of the
fiscal year in only three additional instances (FY1989, FY1995, and FY1997).5
Agencies are generally prohibited from obligating or expending federal funds6 in the absence of
appropriations.7 When appropriations for a particular project or activity are not enacted into law, a

1 The congressional budget process distinguishes between discretionary spending, which is controlled through
appropriations acts, and direct (or mandatory) spending, which is controlled through permanent law. For further
information on the types of spending in the congressional budget process, see CRS Report 98-721, Introduction to the
Federal Budget Process, coordinated by Bill Heniff Jr. For further information on the appropriations process, see CRS
Report R42388, The Congressional Appropriations Process: An Introduction, by Jessica Tollestrup.
2 Several key terms in this report are italicized for emphasis. Under current practice, each House Appropriations
subcommittee typically drafts one regular appropriations bill for the activities under its jurisdiction, for a total of 12
bills each fiscal year. Consolidated appropriations measures, sometimes referred to as “omnibus bills,” where two or
more of the regular bills are combined into one legislative vehicle, have also been used for consideration and
enactment. For further information, see CRS Report RL32473, Omnibus Appropriations Acts: Overview of Recent
Practices, by Jessica Tollestrup.
3 Continuing appropriations acts are commonly referred to as “continuing resolutions” because they usually provide
continuing appropriations in the form of a joint resolution rather than a bill. Continuing appropriations, however, are
occasionally provided through a bill.
4 Section 501 of P.L. 93-344 (88 Stat. 321); 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).
5 FY1977 marked the first full implementation of the congressional budget process established by the Congressional
Budget Act of 1974, which moved the beginning of the fiscal year to October 1.
6 Appropriations bills provide agencies budget authority, which is authority provided by federal law to enter into
contracts or other financial obligations that will result in immediate or future expenditures (or outlays) involving
federal government funds. For explanations of these terms, see U.S. Government Accountability Office (hereafter
GAO), A Glossary of Terms Used in the Federal Budget Process, GAO-05-734SP, September 2005, pp. 20-21,
http://www.gao.gov/.
7 These prohibitions are contained in the Antideficiency Act (31 U.S.C. §1341-1342, §1511-1519). Exceptions are
made under the act, including for activities involving “the safety of human life or the protection of property” (31 U.S.C.
1342). The Antideficiency Act is discussed in CRS Report RL30795, General Management Laws: A Compendium, by
Clinton T. Brass et al. In addition, the GAO provides information about the act online at http://www.gao.gov/ada/
antideficiency.htm.
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“funding gap” occurs until such appropriations are provided. When a funding gap occurs, federal
agencies must begin a “shutdown”8 of the affected projects and activities.9
To prevent the occurrence of funding gaps after the start of the fiscal year until the annual
appropriations process is completed, a continuing resolution can be used to provide temporary
funding. Such funding is provided for a specified period of time, which may be extended through
the enactment of subsequent continuing resolutions. During the 25 fiscal years covering FY1952-
FY1976, one or more continuing resolutions were enacted for all but one fiscal year (FY1953)
during this period.10 Since FY1977, all of the regular appropriations acts were completed before
the start of the fiscal year in only four instances—FY1977, FY1989, FY1995, and FY1997.11
Consequently, one or more CRs were needed to prevent a funding gap each of the other fiscal
years during this period. In total, 161 CRs were enacted into law during the period covering
FY1977-FY2012, ranging from zero to 21 in any single fiscal year. On average, about six CRs
were enacted each fiscal year during this interval.
The purpose of this report is to provide an overview of the components of continuing resolutions
and a longitudinal analysis of recent congressional practices. Consequently, the data and analysis
in this report is inclusive of all appropriations acts entitled or otherwise designated as providing
continuing appropriations.12 The first section of this report explains six of the possible main
components of continuing resolutions—coverage, duration, funding rate, restrictions on new
activities, anomalies, and legislative provisions. The second section discusses the enactment of
regular appropriations prior to the start of the fiscal year and the number of regular appropriations
bills enacted through a CR since FY1977. The third section analyzes variations in the number and
duration of CRs enacted each fiscal year since FY1997, the most recent fiscal year that all regular
appropriations were enacted on time. Finally, the fourth section of this report discusses the
features of the 14 continuing resolutions that provided funding through the remainder of the fiscal
year since FY1977. A list of all CRs enacted between FY1977 and FY2012 is provided at the end
of this report in Table 4.

8 For further information on shutdowns, see CRS Report RL34680, Shutdown of the Federal Government: Causes,
Processes, and Effects, by Clinton T. Brass.
9 Funding gaps and shutdowns should be distinguished, however, because a full shutdown may not occur in some
instances, such as when a funding gap is of a short duration over a weekend. For a further discussion of this issue, as
well as a list of all funding gaps that have occurred since FY1977, see CRS Report RS20348, Federal Funding Gaps: A
Brief Overview, by Jessica Tollestrup.
10 Although regular appropriations for FY1953 were enacted into law after the start of the fiscal year, 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.
11 Although regular appropriations for FY1977 were enacted into law before the start of the fiscal year, continuing
resolutions were also enacted to fund certain unauthorized programs whose funding had not been included in the
regular appropriations acts. Section 1414 of P.L. 82-547 (66 Stat. 661) made regular appropriations enacted later than
the beginning of the fiscal year available retroactively as of July 1, 1952 (the first day of FY1953) and ratified any
obligations incurred before their enactment.
12 In some instances, such acts might alternatively be characterized by some observers as “omnibus appropriations
acts.” For a further discussion of this issue, see the section titled “Funding Rate” and CRS Report RL32473, Omnibus
Appropriations Acts: Overview of Recent Practices, by Jessica Tollestrup.
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Main Components of Continuing Resolutions
Under recent congressional practice, continuing resolutions typically include as many as six main
components. First, CRs provide funding for certain activities, which are typically specified with
reference to the prior or current fiscal year’s appropriations acts. This is referred to in this report
as the CR’s coverage. Second, CRs provide budget authority for a specified duration of time.13
This duration may be as short as a single day, or as long as the remainder of the fiscal year. Third,
CRs typically provide funds based on an overall funding rate. Fourth, the use of budget authority
provided in the CR is typically prohibited for new activities not funded in the previous fiscal year.
Fifth, the duration and amount of funds in the CR, and purposes for which they may be used for
specified activities, may be adjusted through anomalies. Sixth, legislative provisions, which
create, amend, or extend other laws, have been included in some instances.
Although this section discusses the above components as they have been enacted in continuing
resolutions under recent practice, it does not discuss their potential effects on budget execution or
agency operations. For analysis of these issues, see CRS Report RL34700, Interim Continuing
Resolutions (CRs): Potential Impacts on Agency Operations, by Clinton T. Brass.
Coverage
A continuing resolution provides funds for certain activities, which are typically specified with
reference to other pieces of appropriations legislation. This is referred to in this report as the CR’s
“coverage.” Most often, the coverage of a CR is defined with reference to the activities funded in
prior fiscal year’s appropriations acts for which the current fiscal year’s regular appropriations
have yet to be enacted. For example, in Section 101 of P.L. 111-68, the first CR for FY2010, the
coverage included activities funded in selected regular and supplemental appropriations acts for
FY2008 and FY2009:
Sec. 101. Such amounts as may be necessary… under the authority and conditions provided
in such Acts, for continuing projects or activities (including the costs of direct loans and loan
guarantees) that are not otherwise specifically provided for in this joint resolution, that were
conducted in fiscal year 2009, and for which appropriations, funds, or other authority were
made available in the following appropriations Acts:
(1) Chapter 2 of title IX of the Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2008 (P.L. 110-252).
(2) Section 155 of division A of the Consolidated Security, Disaster Assistance, and
Continuing Appropriations Act, 2009 (P.L. 110-329), except that subsections (c), (d), and (e)
of such section shall not apply to funds made available under this joint resolution.
(3) Divisions C through E of the Consolidated Security, Disaster Assistance, and Continuing
Appropriations Act, 2009 (P.L. 110-329).

13 Appropriations bills provide agencies with budget authority, which is defined as authority provided by federal law to
enter into contracts or other financial obligations that will result in immediate or future expenditures (or outlays)
involving federal government funds. For explanations of these terms, see GAO, A Glossary of Terms Used in the
Federal Budget Process, GAO-05-734SP, September 2005, pp. 20-21, http://www.gao.gov/. For the purposes of this
report, the terms “budget authority” and “funding” are used interchangeably.
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(4) Divisions A through I of the Omnibus Appropriations Act, 2009 (P.L. 111-8), as amended
by section 2 of P.L. 111-46.
(5) Titles III and VI (under the heading `Coast Guard’) of the Supplemental Appropriations
Act, 2009 (P.L. 111-32). [emphasis added]
Less frequently, CRs specify coverage with reference to regular appropriations bills for the
current fiscal year that have yet to be enacted.14 In these instances, it is possible that an activity
covered in the corresponding previous fiscal year’s appropriations bill might not be covered in the
CR. Alternatively, a CR might stipulate that activities funded in the previous fiscal year are only
covered if they are included in a regular appropriations bill for the current fiscal year. For
example, Section 101 of P.L. 105-240, the first CR for FY1999, provided that funding would only
continue under such circumstances.
SEC. 101. (a) Such amounts as may be necessary under the authority and conditions
provided in the applicable appropriations Act for the fiscal year 1998 for continuing projects
or activities including the costs of direct loans and loan guarantees (not otherwise
specifically provided for in this joint resolution) which were conducted in the fiscal year
1998 and for which appropriations, funds, or other authority would be available in the
following appropriations Acts:
(1) the Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related
Agencies Appropriations Act, 1999;…
(8) the Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education, and Related
Agencies Appropriations Act, 1999, the House and Senate reported versions of which shall
be deemed to have passed the House and Senate respectively as of October 1, 1998, for the
purposes of this joint resolution, unless a reported version is passed as of October 1, 1998, in
which case the passed version shall be used in place of the reported version for purposes of
this joint resolution;
(9) the Legislative Branch Appropriations Act, 1999;…. [emphasis added]
Continuing resolutions may be enacted as stand-alone legislative vehicles or as provisions
attached to a regular appropriations bill or an omnibus bill.15 In instances in which one or more
regular appropriations bills are near completion, Congress may find it expeditious to include a CR
in that same legislative vehicle to cover activities in the remaining regular bills that are not yet
enacted. In such instances, some activities may be covered by reference while funding for others
is provided through the text of the measure. For example, Division D of P.L. 112-55, the third CR
for FY2012, provided continuing appropriations through December 16, 2011 by referencing the
FY2011 regular appropriations acts, while the other parts of P.L. 112-55 contained the full text of
the FY2012 Agriculture, Commerce-Justice-Science, and Transportation-Housing and Urban
Development regular appropriations acts.

14 See, for example, Section 101 of P.L. 105-240.
15 Two or more regular appropriations bills are sometimes packaged into a single or “omnibus” legislative vehicle prior
to enactment. For a discussion of this practice, see CRS Report RL32473, Omnibus Appropriations Acts: Overview of
Recent Practices, by Jessica Tollestrup.
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Duration
The duration of a continuing resolution refers to the period for which budget authority is provided
for covered activities. The period ends either upon the enactment of the applicable regular
appropriations act or on an expiration date specified in the CR, whichever occurs first. When a
CR expires prior to the completion of all regular appropriations bills for a fiscal year, one or more
additional CRs may be enacted to prevent funding gaps and secure additional increments of time
to complete the remaining regular appropriations bills. The duration of any further CRs may be
brief, sometimes a single day, to encourage the process to conclude swiftly, or may be weeks or
months to accommodate further negotiations or congressional recesses. In some cases, continuing
resolutions have carried over into the next session of Congress.
In most of the fiscal years in which continuing resolutions have been used, a series of two or
more have been enacted into law.16 Such continuing resolutions may be designated by their order
(e.g., “first” CR, “second” CR) or, after the initial continuing resolution has been enacted,
designated as a “further” CR. When action on the regular appropriations bills is not complete by
the time when the first continuing resolution expires, subsequent CRs will often simply replace
the expiration date in the preceding CR with a new expiration date. For example, Section 1 of the
second CR 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 CR by seven days.
Funds provided by a continuing resolution will not necessarily be used by all covered activities
through the date the CR expires. In practice, the budget authority provided by a continuing
resolution may be superseded by the enactment of subsequent appropriations measures or the
occurrence of other specified conditions. In an instance in which a regular appropriations bill was
enacted prior to the expiration of a CR, the budget authority provided by the regular bill for
covered activities would replace the funding provided by the CR. All other activities in the CR,
however, would continue to be funded by the CR unless they were likewise superseded or the CR
expired. The duration of funds for certain activities could also be shortened if other conditions
that are specified in the CR occur. For example, Section 107 of P.L. 108-84, the first CR for
FY2004, provided funds for 31 days or fewer:
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. [emphasis added]
In this instance, funding for all other activities not subject to these conditions would continue
under the CR until it expired, or was otherwise superseded.
When a continuing resolution is attached to a regular appropriations bill, the activities covered by
regular appropriations are funded through the remainder of the fiscal year, whereas the activities
covered by the CR are funded through a specified date. Congress also may single out specific
activities in a CR to receive funding for a specified duration that differs from the vast majority of

16 For further information, see Table 1 and Table 4 in this report.
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other accounts and activities. This type of variation in duration is discussed in the “Exceptions to
Duration, Amount, and Purposes: Anomalies” section.
As an alternative to the separate enactment of one or more of the regular appropriations bills for a
fiscal year, a CR may provide funds for the activities covered in such bills through the remainder
of the fiscal year. This type of CR is referred to as a full-year continuing resolution. Full-year
CRs may provide funding for all bills that have yet to be enacted or include the full text of one or
more regular appropriations bills. For example, Division A of P.L. 112-10 contained the text of
the FY2011 Defense Appropriations Act, whereas the programs and activities covered by the 11
remaining regular appropriations bills were funded by the full-year CR in Division B.
Funding Rate
Continuing resolutions usually fund activities under a formula-type approach that provides budget
authority at a restricted level but not a specified amount. This method of providing budget
authority is commonly referred to as the “funding rate.” Under a funding rate, the amount of
budget authority for an account17 is calculated as the total amount of budget authority annually
available based on a reference level (usually a dollar amount or calculation), multiplied by the
fraction of the fiscal year for which the funds are made available in the continuing resolution.18
This is in contrast to regular and supplemental appropriations acts, which generally provide
specific amounts for each account.
In previous years, many CRs have provided funding across accounts by reference to the amount
of budget authority available in specified appropriations acts from the previous fiscal year. For
example, Section 101 of P.L. 110-329, the first CR for FY2010, provided the following funding
rate:
Such amounts as may be necessary, at a rate for operations as provided in the applicable
appropriations Acts for fiscal year 2008 and under the authority and conditions provided in
such Acts, for continuing projects or activities (including the costs of direct loans and loan
guarantees) that are not otherwise specifically provided for in this joint resolution, that were
conducted in fiscal year 2008, and for which appropriations, funds, or other authority were
made available in the following appropriations Acts: divisions A, B, C, D, F, G, H, J, and K
of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2008 (P.L. 110-161). [emphasis added]
Other CRs have provided funding by reference to the levels available in the previous fiscal year,
with either an increase or decrease from the previous fiscal year’s level. For example, Section
101(a) and (b) of P.L. 112-33, the first CR for FY2012, provided the following funding rate:
(a) Such amounts as may be necessary, at a rate for operations as provided in the applicable
appropriations Acts for fiscal year 2011 and under the authority and conditions provided in
such Acts, for continuing projects or activities (including the costs of direct loans and loan
guarantees) that are not otherwise specifically provided for in this Act, that were conducted

17 Regular appropriations bills contain a series of unnumbered paragraphs with headings, generally reflecting a unique
budget “account.” Elements within budget accounts are divided by “program, project or activity” based upon the table
“Comparative Statement of New Budget Authority” in the back of the report accompanying the appropriations bill.
18 For a discussion of how funding rates are calculated, see GAO, Office of the General Counsel, Principles of Federal
Appropriations Law, Volume II, at 8-10 to 8-14 (3d ed. 2004).
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in fiscal year 2011, and for which appropriations, funds, or other authority were made
available in the following appropriations Acts….
(b) The rate for operations provided by subsection (a) is hereby reduced by 1.503 percent.
[emphasis added]
Although these examples illustrate the most typical types of funding rates provided in recent
years, other types of funding rates have sometimes been used when providing continuing
appropriations. For example, P.L. 105-240, the first continuing resolution for FY1999, provided a
variable funding rate for covered activities. Specifically, the CR provided funds derived from
three possible reference sources—the House-and Senate-passed FY1999 regular appropriations
bills, the amount of the President’s budget request, or “current operations” (the total amount of
budget authority available for obligation for an activity during the previous fiscal year),
whichever was lower. In instances where no funding was provided under the House-and Senate-
passed FY1999 appropriations bills, the funding rate would be based on the lower of the
President’s budget request or current operations. In addition, while the first CR for a fiscal year
may provide a certain funding rate, subsequent CRs sometimes may provide a different rate.
Continuing resolutions have sometimes provided budget authority for some or all covered
activities by incorporating the actual text of one or more regular appropriations bills for that fiscal
year, rather than provide funding according to the rate formula.19 For example, P.L. 112-10,
provided funding for the Department of Defense through the incorporation of a regular
appropriations bill in Division A, whereas Division B provided formulaic funding for all other
activities for the remainder of the fiscal year.20 In this type of instance, the formula in the CR
applies only to activities not covered in the text of the incorporated regular appropriations bill or
bills.
Purpose for Funds and Restrictions on New Activities
Continuing resolutions that provide a funding rate for activities typically stipulate that funds may
be used for the purposes and in the manner provided in specified appropriations acts for the
previous fiscal year. Continuing resolutions also typically provide that the funds provided may
only be used for activities funded in the previous fiscal year. In practice, this is often
characterized as a prohibition on “new starts.” In addition, conditions and limitations on program
activity from the previous year’s appropriations acts are typically retained by language contained
within the resolution’s text. An example of such language, from P.L. 112-33 is below:
Sec. 103. Appropriations made by section 101 shall be available to the extent and in the
manner that would be provided by the pertinent appropriations Act. [emphasis added]
Sec. 104. Except as otherwise provided in section 102, no appropriation or funds made
available or authority granted pursuant to section 101 shall be used to initiate or resume any

19 From a functional perspective, continuing resolutions that do not include any formulaic provisions but instead
provide appropriations only by using the full text of acts (including by cross-reference), are sometimes regarded as
omnibus appropriations acts rather than continuing resolutions, even if they are entitled an act “making continuing
appropriations” or “making further continuing appropriations.”
20 The formulaic funding for many of the accounts funded in Division B was modified by anomalies. For a discussion
of this practice, see the “Anomalies” section of this report.
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project or activity for which appropriations, funds, or other authority were not available
during fiscal year 2011. [emphasis added]
This language prevents the initiation of new activities with the funds provided in the CR.
Agencies may use appropriated funds from prior fiscal years that remain available, however, to
initiate new activities in some circumstances.21
Exceptions to Duration, Amount, and Purposes: Anomalies
Even though continuing resolutions typically provide funds at a rate, they may also include
provisions that enumerate exceptions to the duration, amount, or purposes for which those funds
may be used for certain appropriations accounts or activities. Such provisions are commonly
referred to as “anomalies.” The purpose of anomalies is to preserve Congress’s constitutional
prerogative to provide appropriations in the manner it sees fit, even in instances when only short-
term funding is provided.22
Duration
A continuing resolution may contain anomalies that designate a duration of funding for certain
activities that is different from the overall duration provided. For example, Section 112 of P.L.
108-84, provided an exception to the expiration date of October 31, 2003, specified in Section
107(c) of the continuing resolution:
For entitlements and other mandatory payments whose budget authority was provided in
appropriations Acts for fiscal year 2003, and for activities under the Food Stamp Act of
1977, activities shall be continued at the rate to maintain program levels under current law,
under the authority and conditions provided in the applicable appropriations Act for fiscal
year 2003, to be continued through the date specified in section 107(c): Provided, That
notwithstanding section 107, funds shall be available and obligations for mandatory
payments due on or about November 1 and December 1, 2003, may continue to be made.
[emphasis added]
Amount
Anomalies may also designate a specific amount or rate of budget authority for certain accounts
or activities that is different than the funding rate provided for the remainder of activities in the
continuing resolution.23 Typically, such funding is specified as annualized rate based upon a lump

21 Although appropriations bills most commonly provide budget authority that is available for obligation for only one
fiscal year, budget authority for an activity may be provided for more than one year (“multiyear”) or indefinitely (“no-
year”). In instances where funds provided in previous years are still available for the purpose of initiating a new project
or activity, such funds may generally be used for this purpose, even though funds for the current fiscal year are
provided by a CR. (Government Accountability Office, A Glossary of Terms Used in the Federal Budget Process,
GAO-05-734SP, September 2005, p. 22, http://www.gao.gov/.)
22 Article 1, Section 9 of the U.S. Constitution grants Congress the “power of the purse” by prohibiting expenditures
“but in Consequence of Appropriations made by Law,” http://www.crs.gov/pages/Reports.aspx?PRODCODE=
R42098&Source=search - fn2.
23 Regular appropriations bills contain a series of unnumbered paragraphs with headings, generally reflecting a unique
budget “account.” Elements within budget accounts are divided by “program, project or activity” (Government
Accountability Office, A Glossary of Terms Used in the Federal Budget Process [or A Glossary of Terms Used in the
(continued...)
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sum. For example, Section 120 of P.L. 112-33, provided the following anomaly for a specific
account, which was an exception to the generally applicable rate in section 101:
Notwithstanding section 101 , amounts are provided for ‘‘Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety
Board—Salaries and Expenses’’ at a rate for operations of $29,130,000. [emphasis added]
Funding adjustments can also be provided in anomalies for groups of accounts in the bill. For
example, Section 121 of P.L. 112-33, provided a different rate for certain funds in a group of
accounts:
Notwithstanding any other provision of this Act, except section 106, the District of Columbia
may expend local funds under the heading ‘‘District of Columbia Funds’’ for such programs
and activities under title IV of H.R. 2434 (112th Congress), as reported by the Committee on
Appropriations of the House of Representatives, at the rate set forth under ‘‘District of
Columbia Funds—Summary of Expenses’’ as included in the Fiscal Year 2012 Budget
Request Act of 2011 (D.C. Act 19–92), as modified as of the date of the enactment of this
Act. [emphasis added]
Further, anomalies may provide exceptions to amounts specified in other laws. For example,
Section 121 of P.L. 110-329 provided that funds may be expended in excess of statutory limits, up
to an alternative rate.
Notwithstanding the limitations on administrative expenses in subsections (c)(2) and
(c)(3)(A) of section 3005 of the Digital Television Transition and Public Safety Act of 2005
(P.L. 109-171; 120 Stat. 21), the Assistant Secretary (as such term is defined in section
3001(b) of such Act) may expend funds made available under sections 3006, 3008, and 3009
of such Act for additional administrative expenses of the digital-to-analog converter box
program established by such section 3005 at a rate not to exceed $180,000,000 through the
date specified in section 106(3) of this joint resolution. [emphasis added]
Purpose
Continuing resolutions may also use anomalies to alter the purposes for which the funds may be
expended. Such anomalies may allow funds to be spent for activities that would otherwise be
prohibited, or prohibit funds for activities that might otherwise be allowed. For example, Section
114 of P.L. 108-309, the first CR for FY2005, prohibited funds from being available to a
particular department for a certain activity:
Notwithstanding any other provision of this joint resolution, except sections 107 and 108,
amounts are made available for the Strategic National Stockpile (“SNS”) at a rate for
operations not exceeding the lower of the amount which would be made available under H.R.
5006, as passed by the House of Representatives on September 9, 2004, or S. 2810, as
reported by the Committee on Appropriations of the Senate on September 15, 2004:
Provided, That no funds shall be made available for the SNS to the Department of Homeland
Security under this joint resolution…. [emphasis added]

(...continued)
Federal Budget Process], GAO-05-734SP, September 2005, p. 80, http://www.gao.gov/.) When a CR provides funds
for activities in the prior year’s regular appropriations acts, anomalies reflect the account structure in such acts.
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Legislative Provisions
Substantive legislative provisions, which are provisions that have the effect of creating new law
or changing existing law, also have been included in some continuing resolutions. One reason
why CRs have been attractive vehicles for such provisions is that they are often widely
considered to be must-pass measures to prevent a funding gap. Legislative provisions previously
included in CRs have varied considerably in length, from a short paragraph to more than 200
pages.
House and Senate rules restrict the inclusion of legislative provisions in appropriations bills, but
such restrictions are applicable in different contexts. Although House rules prohibit legislative
provisions from being included in general appropriations measures (including amendments or any
conference report to such measures), these restrictions do not apply continuing resolutions.24
Senate rules prohibit non-germane amendments that include legislative provisions either on the
Senate floor or as an amendment between the houses.25 While these Senate restrictions do apply
in the case of CRs, there is considerable leeway on when such provisions may be included, such
as when the Senate amends a legislative provision included by the House.26 The rules of the
House and Senate, are not self-enforcing. A point of order must be raised and sustained to prevent
any legislative language from being considered and enacted.27
Substantive provisions in continuing resolutions have included language that established major
new policies, such as a FY1985 continuing resolution, which contained the Comprehensive Crime
Control Act of 1984.28
More frequently, continuing resolutions have been used to amend or renew provisions of law. For
example, Section 140 of P.L. 112-33 retroactively renewed import restrictions under the Burmese
Freedom and Democracy Act of 2003 (P.L. 108-61):
(a) Renewal of Import Restrictions Under Burmese Freedom and Democracy Act of 2003.—
(1) In general.—Congress approves the renewal of the import restrictions contained in
section 3(a)(1) and section 3A (b)(1) and (c)(1) of the Burmese Freedom and Democracy Act
of 2003.
(2) Rule of construction.—This section shall be deemed to be a ``renewal resolution” for
purposes of section 9 of the Burmese Freedom and Democracy Act of 2003.
(b) Effective Date.—This section shall take effect on July 26, 2011.

24 House Rule XXI, clause 2, prohibits such language in general appropriations measures and applicable amendments.
House Rule XXII, clause 5, in effect, generally extends the House Rule XXI, clause 2, prohibition to conference
reports. Continuing resolutions, however, are not considered to be general appropriations bills. W[illia]m Holmes
Brown, Charles W. Johnson, and John V. Sullivan, House Practice: A Guide to the Rules, Precedents and Procedures
of the House, 112th Cong., 1st sess. (Washington: GPO, 2011), chapter 4, § 6, pp. 76-77.
25 Senate Rule XVI, paragraphs 2-6.
26 For further information on House and Senate restrictions on legislation in appropriations, see CRS Report R41634,
Limitations in Appropriations Measures: An Overview of Procedural Issues, by Jessica Tollestrup.
27 For further information on points of order, see CRS Report 98-307, Points of Order, Rulings, and Appeals in the
House of Representatives, by Valerie Heitshusen and CRS Report 98-306, Points of Order, Rulings, and Appeals in the
Senate, by Valerie Heitshusen.
28 P.L. 98-473, 98 Stat. 1837.
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Continuing resolutions have also contained legislative provisions that temporarily extended
expiring laws. For example, Section 118 of P.L. 111-242 provided a temporary extension of a
section in the FY2006 National Defense Authorization Act:
The authority provided by section 1202 of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal
Year 2006 (P.L. 109-163), as most recently amended by section 1222 of the National
Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2010 (P.L. 111-84; 123 Stat. 2518), shall continue
in effect through the date specified in section 106(3) of this Act.
Legislative provisions that temporarily extend expiring laws are effective through the date the
continuing resolution expires, unless otherwise specified.
The Enactment of Regular Appropriations Bills and
Use of Continuing Resolutions, FY1977-FY2012
As mentioned previously, regular appropriations were enacted after October 1 in all but four
fiscal years between FY1977 and FY2012. Consequently, continuing resolutions have been
needed in almost all of these years to prevent one or more funding gaps from occurring.29
Table 1 provides an overview of the enactment of regular appropriations bills and the use of
continuing resolutions between FY1977 and FY2012. Excluding the four fiscal years that all
appropriations were enacted on time (FY1977, FY1989, FY1995, and FY1997), over half of the
regular appropriations bills for a fiscal year were enacted on time in only one instance (FY1978).
In all other fiscal years, fewer than six regular appropriations acts were enacted on or before
October 1. In addition, in 11 out of the 36 years during this period, no regular appropriations bills
were enacted prior to the start of the fiscal year. Five of these fiscal years have occurred in the
interval since FY2001.
Table 1. The Enactment of Regular Appropriations Bills and Use of Continuing
Resolutions, FY1977-FY2012
Regular Appropriations Bills
Number of Regular
Enacted on or
Enacted in
Continuing
Fiscal
Appropriations
before
Continuing
Resolutions
Year
Billsa
October 1
Resolutions
Enactedb
1977 13
13
0
(2)c
1978 13
9
1
3
1979 13
5
1
1
1980 13
3
3
2
1981 13
1
5
3
1982 13
0
4
4
1983 13
1
7
2

29 For further information on the funding gaps that occurred during this period, see CRS Report RS20348, Federal
Funding Gaps: A Brief Overview, by Jessica Tollestrup.
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Regular Appropriations Bills
Number of Regular
Enacted on or
Enacted in
Continuing
Fiscal
Appropriations
before
Continuing
Resolutions
Year
Billsa
October 1
Resolutions
Enactedb
1984 13
4
3
2
1985 13
4
8
5
1986 13
0
7
5
1987 13
0
13
6
1988 13
0
13
5
1989 13
13
0
0
1990 13
1
0
3
1991 13
0
0
5
1992 13
4
1
4
1993 13
1
0
1
1994 13
2
0
3
1995 13
13
0
0
1996 13
0
0d 13
1997 13
(13)e 0 0
1998 13
1
0
6
1999 13
1
0
6
2000 13
4
0
7
2001 13
2
0
21
2002 13
0
0
8
2003 13
0
0f 8
2004 13
3
0
5
2005 13
1
0
3
2006 11
2
0
3
2007 11
1
9
4
2008 12
0
0
4
2009 12
(3)g
0g 2
2010 12
1
0
2
2011 12
0
11
8
2012 12
0
3h 5
Sources: U.S. Congress, Senate Committee on Appropriations, Appropriations, Budget Estimates, Etc., 94th
Congress, 2nd session -104th Congress, 1st session (Washington: GPO, 1976-1995). U.S. Congress, House,
Calendars of the U.S. House of Representatives and History of Legislation, 104th Congress, 1st session -112th Congress,
1st session (Washington: GPO, 1995-2011).
a. Between the 95th and 108th Congresses, there were 13 House and Senate Appropriations subcommittees
responsible for one regular appropriations bill each. During the 109th Congress, due to subcommittee
realignment, the total number of regular appropriations bills was effectively reduced to 11 during each year
of this Congress. Beginning in the 110th Congress, subcommittee jurisdictions were again realigned for a
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total of 12 subcommittees, each of which is currently responsible for a single regular appropriations bill. For
further information on subcommittee realignment during this period, see CRS Report RL31572,
Appropriations Subcommittee Structure: History of Changes from 1920-2011, by Jessica Tollestrup.
b. For further information on each of these continuing resolutions, see Table 4.
c. Although all 13 FY1977 regular appropriations bills became law on or before the start of the fiscal year, two
CRs were enacted. These CRs general y provided funding for certain activities that had not been included in
the regular appropriations acts.
d. An FY1996 CR (P.L. 104-99) provided full-year funding for the FY1996 foreign operations regular bil ;
however, the CR provided that the foreign operations measure be enacted separately (P.L. 104-107).
e. This number reflects six regular acts being combined to form an omnibus appropriations act, and enacting
the other seven bills individually.
f.
One measure (P.L. 108-7) originated in the form of a continuing resolution, but in conference it was
converted into an omnibus appropriations resolution.
g. Three regular appropriations bills were packaged into a single act that also included the initial FY2010 CR
(P.L. 110-329).
h. Three regular appropriations bills were packaged into a single act that also included the third FY2012 CR
(P.L. 112-55).
Regular appropriations acts were enacted in continuing resolutions in 14 fiscal years. Although 12
of these fiscal years were prior to FY1992, the other two instances occurred recently—in FY2011
and FY2012.
Continuing resolutions were enacted in all but three of these fiscal years (FY1989, FY1995, and
FY1997). In FY1977, although all 13 regular appropriations bills became law on or before the
start of the fiscal year, two CRs were enacted to provide funding for certain activities that had not
been included in the regular appropriations acts.
Duration and Frequency of Continuing Resolutions,
FY1998-FY2012
In the interval since FY1997, the most recent fiscal year that all regular appropriations bills were
completed on time, continuing resolutions have been a significant element of the annual
appropriations process. As shown in Table 2, a total of 92 continuing resolutions were enacted
into law during this period. While the average number of such measures enacted per year was
about six (6.1), the number enacted ranged from two measures (for FY2009 and FY2010) to 21
(for FY2001).
Table 2. Number and Duration of Continuing Resolutions: FY1998-FY2012
Number of
Total
Average
Final
Continuing
Duration
Duration for
Expiration
Fiscal Year
Resolutions
in Daysa
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
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Number of
Total
Average
Final
Continuing
Duration
Duration for
Expiration
Fiscal Year
Resolutions
in Daysa
Each Act
Date
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
2010
2
79
39.5
12-18-2009
2011
8
365
45.6
9-30-2011
2012
5
84
16.8
12-23-2011
Total
92
1,899
—
—
Annual
6.1 126.6 28.8 —
Average
Sources: Prepared by the Congressional Research Service using data from (1) the Legislative Information
System; (2) Congressional Research Service, Appropriations Status Tables (various fiscal years), available at
http://crs.gov/Pages/appover.aspx; and (3) various other sources.
a. Duration in days is measured, in the case of the initial continuing resolution for a fiscal year, from the first
day of the year (October 1). For example, the a CR enacted on September 30 that provided funding
through October 12 would be measured as having a 12 day duration. For subsequent continuing resolutions
for a fiscal year, duration in days is measured from the day after the expiration of the preceding continuing
resolution.
b. The fifth continuing resolution for FY2004 did not change the expiration date of January 31, 2004,
established in the preceding continuing resolution.
During the past 15 fiscal years, Congress provided funding by means of a continuing resolution
for an average of more than four months (126.6 days) each fiscal year. Taking into account the
total duration of all CRs for each fiscal year, the period for which continuing appropriations were
provided ranged from 21 days to 365 days. On average, each of the 92 continuing resolutions
lasted for almost 29 (28.8) days; 45 of these were for seven days or fewer.30 Two full-year CRs
were used during this period, for FY2007 and FY2011.
In the first four instances (FY1998-FY2001), the expiration date in the final CR 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 CR for the next three fiscal years (FY2002-FY2004), however, was set
in the following session of Congress on a date occurring between January 10 and February 20. In
five of the next eight fiscal years (FY2005, FY2006, FY2008, FY2010, and FY2012), the
expiration dates were in the first quarter of the fiscal year on a date occurring between December
8 and December 31. For the remaining fiscal years, the final CRs were enacted during the next
session of Congress. In one instance, the final CR for FY2009 carried an expiration date of March

30 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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11, 2009. The other two final CRs, for FY2007 and FY2011, provided funding through the end of
the fiscal year.
Figure 1 presents a representation of both the number and duration of continuing resolutions for
FY1998-FY2012. As the figure shows, there is no significant correlation between these two
variables. For example, six CRs 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 CRs 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 each for FY2009 and FY2010—covered a total of 162 days and 79 days,
respectively, at an average duration of 81 days and 40 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 example, for FY2001, 21 CRs covered the first 82 days of
the fiscal year. The first 25 days were covered by a series of four CRs 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 CRs. The next
31 days were covered by two CRs, the first lasting 10 days and the second lasting 21 days. The
first of these two CRs 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 CR was
enacted into law on November 15 and expired on December 5, which was 10 days before the
lame-duck session ended. The remaining five CRs, 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 measures passed by Congress were being processed for the President’s approval).31
Table 4 provides more detailed information on the number, length, and duration of continuing
resolutions enacted for FY1977-FY2012. As indicated previously, this represents the period after
the start of the federal fiscal year was moved from July 1 to October 1 by the Congressional
Budget Act.

31 For further information on the appropriations context for FY2001, see “Longest Appropriations Cycle in Five Years
Ends with Omnibus Spending Bill,” Congressional Quarterly Almanac, 106th Cong., 2nd sess. (2000), vol. LVI, pp. 2-3
through 2-6.
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Figure 1. Duration of Continuing Resolutions: FY1998-FY2012
1998
57
1999
21
2000
63
2001
82
2002
102
2003
143
ear 2004
123
Y 2005
al
69
isc 2006
92
F 2007
365
2008
92
2009
162
2010
79
2011
365
2012
84
0
100
200
300
400
Number of Days

Note: Each segment of a bar for a fiscal year represents the duration in days 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 in days 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 in days is measured from the day after the expiration of the
preceding continuing resolution.
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Features of Full-Year Continuing Resolutions,
FY1977-FY2012
Congress has employed full-year continuing resolutions on a number of occasions. Prior to the
full implementation of the Congressional Budget Act in FY1977, full-year CRs were used
occasionally, particularly in the 1970s. Full-year CRs were enacted into law for four of the six
preceding fiscal years (FY1971, FY1973, FY1975, and FY1976).32 Following the successful
completion of action on the regular appropriations acts for FY1977, Congress again found need
for full-year CRs, and for each of the 11 fiscal years, FY1978-FY1988, Congress approved a full-
year CR covering at least one regular appropriations act. Three years later, Congress enacted
another full-year CR, for FY1992. Most recently, full-year CRs were enacted for FY2007 and
FY2011.
Table 3 identifies the 14 full-year continuing resolutions enacted for the period since FY1977.
Nine of the 14 full-year CRs during this period were enacted in the first quarter of the fiscal
year—three in October, two in November, and four in December. The five remaining measures,
however, were enacted during the following session, between February 15 and June 5.
The full year CRs enacted during this period also varied in terms of length and the form of
funding provided. Full-year continuing resolutions prior to FY1983 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
from 19 to 451 pages (averaging 244 pages). The greater page length of full-year CRs enacted for
the period covering FY1983-FY1988 may be explained by two factors. First, full-year CRs
enacted prior to FY1983 generally established funding levels by formulaic reference. Beginning
with FY1983, however, Congress began to incorporate the full text of some or all of the covered
regular appropriations acts, thereby increasing its length considerably. None of the full-year CRs
enacted between 1985 and 1988 used formulaic funding provisions. Secondly, the number of
regular appropriations acts covered by full-year CRs increased significantly during the FY1983-
FY1988 period. For the period covering FY1978-FY1982, the number of regular appropriations
acts covered by CRs for the full fiscal year ranged from one to eight (averaging four). Beginning
with FY1983 and extending through FY1988, the number of covered acts ranged from five to 13
(averaging 9.25).
The three most recent full-year continuing resolutions, for FY1992, FY2007, and FY2011, largely
returned to the earlier practice of using formulaic references and anomalies to establish funding
levels. Both the FY1992 and FY2007 CRs provided funding only through this means. The
FY2011 CR provided funding by incorporating the full text of one regular appropriations bill (the
FY2011 Department of Defense Appropriations Act), while providing for the activities in the
other 11 bills through formulaic provisions and anomalies. As a consequence, the length of these
measures was considerably shorter than the FY1983 through FY1988 full-year CRs.

32 The full-year CR 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). The additional quarter of funding was necessary
to facilitate the change in the start of the federal government fiscal year from July 1 to October 1.
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Table 3. Full-Year Continuing Resolutions, FY1977-FY2012
Included
Page Length
Formulaic
Number of
Fiscal
Public Law
Enactment
(Statutes-
Funding
Appropriations
Year
Number
Date
at-Large)
Provision(s)?
Acts Covereda
1978 P.L.
95-205 12-09-1977
2
No
2/13
1979 P.L.
95-482 10-18-1978
4
No
1/13
1980 P.L.
96-123 11-20-1979
4
Yes
5/13
1981 P.L.
97-12 06-05-1981
2b Yes 8b/13
1982 P.L.
97-161 03-31-1982
1
Yes
4c/13
1983 P.L.
97-377 12-21-1982
95
Yes
7/13
1984 P.L.
98-151 11-14-1983
19
Yes
5/13
1985 P.L.
98-473 10-12-1984 363
No
9/13
1986 P.L.
99-190 12-19-1985 142
No
8/13
1987 P.L.
99-591 10-30-1986 391
No
13/13
1988 P.L.
100-202 12-22-1987
451
No
13/13
1992 P.L.
102-266 04-01-1992
8
Yes
10d/13
2007 P.L.
110-5 02-15-2007
53
Yes
9e/11
2011 P.L.
112-10 04-15-2011
98
Yes
12/12
Sources: Prepared by the Congressional Research Service using data from (1) the Legislative Information
System; (2) Congressional Research Service, Appropriations Status Tables (various fiscal years), available at
http://crs.gov/Pages/appover.aspx; and (3) various other sources.
a. Between the 95th and 108th Congresses, there were 13 House and Senate Appropriations subcommittees
responsible for one regular appropriations bill each. During the 109th Congress, due to subcommittee
realignment, the total number of regular appropriations bills was effectively reduced to 11 during each year
of this Congress. Beginning in the 110th Congress, subcommittee jurisdictions were again realigned for a
total of 12 subcommittees, each of which is currently responsible for a single regular appropriations bill. For
further information on subcommittee realignment during this period, see CRS Report RL31572,
Appropriations Subcommittee Structure: History of Changes from 1920-2011, by Jessica Tollestrup.
b. This full-year CR was contained within the FY1981 Supplemental Appropriations and Rescissions Act 1981
(P.L. 97-12, see Title IV, “Further Continuing Appropriations”). Title IV extended through the end of the
fiscal year the expiration of P.L. 96-536, which included appropriations for the Legislative Branch;
Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education, and Related Agencies; Agriculture, Rural
Development and Related Agencies; District of Columbia; Department of Housing and Urban
Development-Independent Agencies; Department of Interior and Related Agencies; Departments of State,
Justice, and Commerce, the Judiciary, and Related Agencies; Department of Defense.
c. This full-year CR extended through the end of the fiscal year the expiration date of P.L. 97-92, which
included appropriations for Treasury, Postal Service and General Government; Department of
Transportation and Related Agencies; Department of Housing and Urban Development and Independent
Agencies; Departments of Commerce, Justice, and State, the Judiciary.
d. This full-year CR extended through the end of FY1992 the expiration date of P.L. 102-163, which included
appropriations for Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies;
Departments of Commerce, Justice, and State, the Judiciary; Department of Defense; Foreign Operations,
Export Financing, and Related Programs; Department of the Interior and Related Agencies; Departments of
Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education, and Related Agencies; Military Construction;
Department of Transportation and Related Agencies; Treasury, Postal Service, and General Government;
Departments of Veterans Affairs and Housing and Urban Development, and Independent Agencies.
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e. Despite the reorganization of the House and Senate Appropriations subcommittees at the beginning of the
110th Congress, the FY2007 CR (P.L. 110-5), which was enacted on February 15, 2007, reflected the
subcommittee jurisdictions in the 109th Congress.
Table 4. Number, Page Length, and Duration of Continuing Resolutions:
FY1977-FY2012
Number
of Acts
by
Number of
Public
Statutes-
Fiscal
Fiscal
Acts
Law
at-Large
Page
Enactment Expiration Duration
Year
Year
Cumulatively Number
Citation
Length
Date
Date
in Daysa
1977
1 1
P.L.
94-
90 Stat.
3 10-11-1976
03-31-1977 183
473
2065-
2067
2 2
P.L.
95-
91 Stat.
1 04-01-1977
04-30-1977 30
16
28
1978
1 3
P.L.
95-
91 Stat.
2 10-13-1977
10-31-1977 31
130
1153-
1154
2 4
P.L.
95-
91 Stat.
2 11-09-1977
11-30-1977 30
165
1323-
1324
3 5
P.L.
95-
91 Stat.
2 12-09-1977
09-30-1978 304
205
1460-
1461
1979 1
6 P.L.
95-
92 Stat.
3 10-18-1978
09-30-1979 365
482
1603-
1605
1980
1 7
P.L.
96-
93 Stat.
8 10-12-1979
11-20-1979 51
86
656-663
2 8
P.L.
96-
93 Stat.
4 11-20-1979
09-30-1980 315
123
923-926
1981
1 9
P.L.
96-
94 Stat.
9 10-01-1980
12-15-1980 76
369
1351-
1359
2 10
P.L.
96-
94 Stat.
7 12-16-1980
06-05-1981 172
536
3166-
3172
3 11
P.L.
97-
95 Stat.
2 06-05-1981
09-30-1981 117
12b
95-96
1982
1 12
P.L.
97-
95 Stat.
11 10-01-1981
11-20-1981 51
51
958-968
2 13
P.L.
97-
95 Stat.
1 11-23-1981
12-15-1981 22
85
1098
3 14
P.L.
97-
95 Stat.
21 12-15-1981
03-31-1982 106
92
1183-
1203
4 15
P.L.
97-
96 Stat.
1 03-31-1982
09-30-1982 183
161
22
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19

Continuing Resolutions: Overview of Components and Recent Practices

Number
of Acts
by
Number of
Public
Statutes-
Fiscal
Fiscal
Acts
Law
at-Large
Page
Enactment Expiration Duration
Year
Year
Cumulatively Number
Citation
Length
Date
Date
in Daysa
3 51
P.L.
102-
105 Stat.
1 11-15-1991
11-26-1990 12
163
1048
4 52
P.L.
102-
106 Stat.
8 04-01-1992
09-30-1992 183
266
92-99
1993 1
53 P.L.
102-
106 Stat.
4 10-01-1992
10-05-1992 5
376
1311-
1314
1994
1 54
P.L.
103-
107 Stat.
4 09-30-1993
10-21-1993 21
88
977-980
2 55
P.L.
103-
107 Stat.
1 10-21-1993
10-28-1993 7
113
1114
3 56
P.L.
103-
107 Stat.
1 10-29-1993
11-10-1993 13
128
1355
1995
[none]
—
—
—
— — —
—
1996
1 57
P.L.
104-
109 Stat.
5 09-30-1995
11-13-1995 44
31
278-282
2 58
P.L.
104-
109 Stat.
6 11-19-1995
11-20-1995 7
54
540-545
3 59
P.L.
104-
109 Stat.
6 11-20-1995
12-15-1995 25
56
548-553
4 60
P.L.
104-
109 Stat.
6 12-22-1995
01-03-1996 19j
69
767-772
5 61
P.L.
104-
110 Stat.
4 01-04-1996
01-25-1996 22j
90
3-6
6 62
P.L.
104-
110 Stat.
5 01-06-1996
09-30-1996 290j
91
10-14
7 63
P.L.
104-
110 Stat.
9 01-06-1996
09-30-1996 290j
92
16-24
8 64
P.L.
104-
110 Stat.
1 01-06-1996
01-26-1996 42
94
25
9 65
P.L.
104-
110 Stat.
22 01-26-1996
03-15-1996 49j
99
26-47
10 66
P.L.
104-
110 Stat.
1 03-15-1996
03-22-1996 7
116
826
11 67
P.L.
104-
110 Stat.
1 03-22-1996
03-29-1996 7
118
829
12 68
P.L.
104-
110 Stat.
3 03-29-1996
04-24-1996 26j
122
876-878
13 69
P.L.
104-
110 Stat.
1 04-24-1996
04-25-1996 1
131
1213
1997
[none]
—
—
—
— — —
—
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Continuing Resolutions: Overview of Components and Recent Practices

Number
of Acts
by
Number of
Public
Statutes-
Fiscal
Fiscal
Acts
Law
at-Large
Page
Enactment Expiration Duration
Year
Year
Cumulatively Number
Citation
Length
Date
Date
in Daysa
2010
1 147
P.L.
111-
123 Stat.
11 10-01-2009
10-31-2009 31
68n
2043-
2053
2 148
P.L.
111-
123 Stat.
3 10-30-2009
12-18-2009 48
88o
2972-
2974
2011
1 149
P.L.
111-
124 Stat.
10 09-30-210 12-03-2010 64
242
2607-
2616
2 150
P.L.
111-
124 Stat.
1 12-04-2010
12-18-2010 15
290
3063
3 151
P.L.
111-
124 Stat.
1 12-18-2010
12-21-2010 3
317
3454
4 152
P.L.
111-
124 Stat.
4 12-22-2010
03-04-2011 73
322p
3518-
3521
5 153
P.L.
112-
125 Stat.
8 03-02-2011
03-18-2011 14
4
6-13
6 154
P.L.
112-
125 Stat.
8 03-18-2011
04-08-2011 21
6
23-30
7 155
P.L.
112-
125 Stat.
2 04-09-2011
04-15-2011 7
8
34-35
8 156
P.L.
112-
125 Stat.
98 04-15-2011
09-30-2011 168
10q
102-199
2012
1 157
P.L.
112-
125 Stat.
6 09-30-2011
10-04-2011 4
33
363-368
2 158
P.L.
112-
125 Stat.
6 10-05-2011
11-18-2011 45
36
386-391
3 159
P.L.
112-
125 Stat.
1 11-18-2011
12-16-2011 28
55r
710
4 160
P.L.
112-
125 Stat.
1 12-16-2011
12-17-2011 1
67
769
5 161
P.L.
112-
125 Stat.
1 12-17-2011
12-23-2011 6
68
770
Sources: Prepared by the Congressional Research Service using data from: (1) the Legislative Information
System; (2) Congressional Research Service, Appropriations Status Tables (various fiscal years), available at
http://crs.gov/Pages/appover.aspx; and (3) various other sources.
a. Duration in days 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 in days is measured from the day after the expiration of the preceding continuing resolution.
In several instances, as appropriate, the number of days reflects an extra day in a leap year (every fourth
year beginning with calendar year 1976).
Several continuing resolutions provided continuing appropriations for mixed periods of time. For example,
three CRs—P.L. 96-86 (for FY1980), P.L. 97-51 (for FY1982), and P.L. 97-276 (for FY1983)—were enacted
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Continuing Resolutions: Overview of Components and Recent Practices

in November or December of the applicable year for periods covering 51 days, 51 days, and 78 days,
respectively, but they also included continuing appropriations for the remainder of that fiscal year for
activities covered by the Legislative Branch Appropriations Act. (See also the discussion of actions for
FY1996 under footnote “j.”) In these instances, the “Duration in Days” column reflects the time period that
applied to the greatest number of activities funded by the measure.
b. Title IV (95 Stat. 95-96) of P.L. 97-12, the Supplemental Appropriations and Rescission Act for FY1981,
provided continuing appropriations for FY1981; the other titles of the act (95 Stat. 14-95) are excluded
from the page count.
c. P.L. 97-377 incorporated the ful text of various regular appropriations acts.
d. Title I (98 Stat. 1837-1976) of P.L. 98-473 provided continuing appropriations for FY1985; the other title,
Title II (98 Stat. 1976-2199), set forth the Comprehensive Crime Control Act of 1984, and is excluded from
the page count.
e. P.L. 99-190 incorporated the ful text of various regular appropriations acts.
f.
P.L. 99-591 superseded P.L. 99-500 and corrected enrol ment errors in the earlier act; both laws originated
as H.J.Res. 738.
g. P.L. 100-202 incorporated the full text of various regular appropriations acts.
h. Title I (104 Stat. 867-870) of P.L. 101-403 provided continuing appropriations for FY1991; Titles II and III
(104 Stat. 871-874) provided supplemental appropriations and are excluded from the page count.
i.
Section 106(c) of P.L. 102-145 provided that, as an exception to the general expiration date, continuing
appropriations for the Foreign Operation Appropriations Act would expire on March 31, 1992 (a duration
of 154 days).
j.
A total of 13 continuing resolutions were enacted for FY1996 (and one was vetoed). Two funding gaps
occurred, the first in mid-November 1995 and the second from mid-December 1995 until early January
1996. The CRs for this year may be divided into two categories depending on whether their coverage
general y was comprehensive or partial. Nine of the continuing resolutions enacted for FY1996 general y
provided short-term funding for al activities under the regular appropriations acts that had not yet been
enacted, while the other four provided funding only for selected activities within certain acts. The four acts
in the latter category included the following:
(1) P.L. 104-69, which funded the Aid to Families With Dependent Children (AFDC) and Foster Care and
Adoption Assistance programs, programs of the District of Columbia, and certain veterans’ programs;
(2) P.L. 104-90, which funded programs of the District of Columbia;
(3) P.L. 104-91, Title I, which funded a variety of programs, including ones pertaining to the Peace Corps,
the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, trade adjustment
assistance benefits, and the National Institutes of Health, among others; and
(4) P.L. 104-92, which funded a variety of programs, including ones pertaining to nutrition services for the
elderly, visitor services in the National Park System, certain veterans’ programs, and programs of the
District of Columbia, among others.
Activities under two of the regular appropriations acts for FY1996 were funded through the end of the
fiscal year (September 30, 1996) in continuing resolutions: (1) Title IV of P.L. 104-92 provided such funding
for activities covered by the District of Columbia Appropriations Act; and (2) Title III of P.L. 104-99
provided such funding for activities covered by the Foreign Operations Appropriations Act. In addition,
other selected activities were funded through the remainder of the fiscal year in P.L. 104-91, P.L. 104-92,
and P.L. 104-122. Action on the regular appropriations acts for FY1996 was concluded with the enactment
of P.L. 104-134, the Omnibus Consolidated Rescissions and Appropriations Act of 1996, on April 26, 1996
(110 Stat. 1321 through 1321-381), which provided funding for the remainder of the fiscal year for activities
covered by five of the regular appropriations acts.
Three of the continuing resolutions had mixed periods of duration. The duration shown in the table was
determined as follows:
(1) most of the funding provided in P.L. 104-92 was for the remainder of the fiscal year, so a duration of 290
days was used;
(2) while the funding provided in P.L. 104-99 for activities covered by the Foreign Operations
Appropriations Act was for the remainder of the fiscal year, the funding provided for activities covered by
four other regular appropriations acts was through March 15, 1996, so a duration of 49 days was used; and
(3) most of the funding provided in P.L. 104-122 was through April 24, while only one account was funded
through the remainder of the fiscal year, so a duration of 26 days was used.
In the case of P.L. 104-91, a measure requiring the Secretary of Commerce to convey to the
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Continuing Resolutions: Overview of Components and Recent Practices

Commonwealth of Massachusetts the National Marine Fisheries Service laboratory located on Emerson
Avenue in Gloucester, Massachusetts, Title I (110 Stat. 10-14) of the act provided continuing appropriations
for selected activities for the remainder of FY1996; Section 1 (110 Stat. 7-10) and Title II (110 Stat. 14-15)
pertained to other matters and are excluded from the page count. Section 110 of the act made the funding
effective as of December 16, 1995.
k. 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).
l.
Continuing appropriations for FY2007 were provided by Division B (120 Stat. 1311-1316) of P.L. 109-289,
the Defense Appropriations Act for FY2007; the other portions of the act (120 Stat. 1257-1311) are
excluded from the page count.
m. Continuing appropriations for FY2008 were provided by Division B (121 Stat. 1341-1344) of P.L. 110-116,
the Defense Appropriations Act for FY2008; the other portions of the act (121 Stat. 1295-1341) are
excluded from the page count.
n. Continuing appropriations for FY2010 were provided by Division B (123 Stat. 2043-2053) of P.L. 111-68,
the Legislative Branch Appropriations Act for FY2010; the other portions of the act (123 Stat. 2023-2043)
are excluded from the page count.
o. Continuing appropriations for FY2010 were provided by Division B (123 Stat. 2972-2974) of P.L. 111-88,
the Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act for 2010; the other portions of the act
(123 Stat. 2904-2972) are excluded from the page count.
p. Continuing appropriations for FY2011 were provided by Division A (124 Stat. 3518-3521) of P.L. 111-322,
the Continuing Appropriations and Surface Transportation Extensions Act for 2011; the other portions of
the act (124 Stat. 3522-3531) are excluded from the page count.
q. Ful -year continuing appropriations for FY2011 were provided by Division B (125 Stat. 102-199) of P.L. 112-
10, the Department of Defense and Ful -Year Continuing Appropriations Act for 2011; the other portions
of the act (125 Stat. 38-102, 199-212) are excluded from the page count.
r. Continuing appropriations for FY2012 were provided by Division D (125 Stat. 710) of P.L. 112-55, the
Consolidated and Further Continuing Appropriations Act for 2012; the other portions of the act (125 Stat.
552-709) are excluded from the page count.

Author Contact Information

Jessica Tollestrup

Analyst on Congress and the Legislative Process
jtollestrup@crs.loc.gov, 7-0941

Acknowledgments
This report incorporates some historical data and other information originally compiled and authored by
Robert Keith, formerly a specialist in American National Government, and Sandy Streeter, formerly an
analyst on Congress and the Legislative Process. The listed author is available to respond to inquiries on
the subject.

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