what is a cr in government

A Continuing Resolution (CR) is a temporary funding measure that Congress can use to fund the federal government for a limited amount of time. It allows federal government operations to continue when final appropriations have not been made. CRs generally continue the level of funding from the prior year’s appropriations or the previously approved CR from the current year. They are often employed to avoid a partial government shutdown and to give lawmakers more time to enact appropriations for the full year. CRs are needed when Congress and the President do not reach agreement on the spending levels and enact regular appropriations by the start of the federal fiscal year in October. The federal government is currently under a CR for FY 2023 that expires in December. CRs are common and keep the government running until the CR expires or when final appropriations are enacted, whichever comes first. However, they do so at a cost, and missing the October 1 deadline to enact all 12 appropriation bills is not unusual. Lawmakers often enact multiple CRs in a single fiscal year before deciding on full-year funding levels.