Congress Passes and President Trump Signs into Law CR Funding Federal Programs until January 30, Ending Record-Breaking 43-Day Government Shutdown – Take Action!
Nov 14, 2025
The record-breaking 43-day government shutdown came to an end on November 12 after Congress passed and President Trump signed into law a temporary funding bill, known as a continuing resolution (CR), that will fund federal programs and services through January 30, and provide funding through the remainder of fiscal year (FY) 2026 for programs covered under the departments of Veterans Affairs and Agriculture, as well as for legislative operations. The CR also reverses the Trump administration’s reduction-in-force (RIF) notices issued to federal employees furloughed during the shutdown, and guarantees back pay for federal workers. However, the CR does not include an extension of Affordable Care Act (ACA) tax credits, slated to expire at the end of the year, nor does it include guardrails to prevent the Trump administration from rescinding Congressionally Appropriated spending – two key demands from Democrats.
After passing the Senate on November 10 by a vote of 60-40, House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) called the House back into session for the first time since the shutdown began to vote on the measure. The CR passed the House on November 12 along a mostly party-line vote, 222-209, with six Democrats joining their Republican colleagues to vote in favor of the bill: Representatives Henry Cuellar (D-TX), Don Davis (D-NC), Jared Golden (D-ME), Adam Gray (D-CA), Marie Gluesenkamp Perez (D-WA), and Tom Suozzi (D-NY). Representatives Thomas Massie (R-KY) and Greg Steube (R-FL) were the only House Republicans to vote against the bill.
No Language Preventing Harmful Anticipated CoC Notice
The CR did not include language requiring HUD to award eligible Continuum of Care (CoC) program renewals for 12 months, rather than issuing a new funding notice for FY25. After years of requests from advocates and service providers, in 2024, Congress extended the process for applying for HUD CoC funding to a two-year cycle, rather than a one-year cycle, allowing agencies to use their time and funding more efficiently. However, in July, HUD issued a notice to CoCs indicating it would not honor the two-year funding cycle and would instead issue a funding notice for FY25.
In addition to disrupting the scheduled funding cycle, the FY25 notice is expected to include provisions that would have a detrimental impact on communities’ ability to respond to the needs of people experiencing homelessness. In particular, the National Alliance to End Homelessness (the Alliance) warns that the FY25 notice will cap the amount of CoC funding communities can use for Permanent Supportive Housing and Rapid Re-Housing, two vital resources for ending homelessness. If issued, the Alliance estimates that as many as 170,000 people who currently receive rental assistance through the CoC program would be at immediate risk of losing their assistance and returning to homelessness.
Food Assistance Unfrozen, Rural Housing Funding Extended
The FY26 U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) spending bill included in the CR would extend funding for USDA programs until September 30, the end of the current fiscal year. The USDA funds vital assistance programs, including the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), and rural housing services that help people with low incomes living in rural areas find safe, affordable housing. SNAP provides over 42 million people with assistance to help cover the cost of food, but the Trump administration suspended SNAP payments for nearly two weeks during the shutdown. With the federal government reopened, SNAP benefits are expected to be distributed to recipients soon.
Energy Assistance Funding Still Delayed
Despite the end of the shutdown, households that rely on the Low-Income Heating and Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) to help cover home energy expenses are expected to face additional delays in receiving their assistance. LIHEAP serves 6.2 million households with low incomes, helping them maintain a comfortable temperature in their homes throughout the year. In April, the Trump administration fired the staff at the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) responsible for administering LIHEAP; the shutdown further delayed HHS’s ability to distribute funding to states. It will take HHS at least four weeks to determine the state's allocation formula and distribute funding, so assisted households may not receive their payments until December. According to HUD, housing is considered “affordable” if a household spends no more than 30% of its adjusted income on rent/mortgage, plus utilities. LIHEAP helps keep housing affordable for assisted households.
The Need for Additional Funding for Voucher Renewals in a Final FY26
With a CR in place, members of Congress will be focused on enacting the remaining nine FY26 spending bills before the CR expires in January, including the Transportation, Housing, and Urban Development (THUD) spending bill that funds HUD’s vital affordable housing, homelessness, and community development programs.
While both the House and Senate FY26 THUD spending bills reject the drastic spending cuts and programmatic overhauls proposed in President Trump’s FY26 budget request, neither spending bill provides sufficient funding to ensure renewal of all existing Housing Choice Vouchers (HCVs) or Emergency Housing Vouchers (EHVs). Without sufficient funding, vouchers will be lost through attrition – when a household no longer needs their voucher, the voucher cannot be reissued to a new family because it is no longer attached to funding. When renewal funding is insufficient or when funding is cut – households that rely on a voucher to keep a roof over their heads actively lose their rental assistance, putting them at risk for housing instability, eviction, and in worst cases, homelessness.
At current funding levels, over 2.4 million households receive rental assistance, accounting for just one in four households who qualify. Under the House’s FY26 spending bill, an estimated 181,900 fewer households would be served; in the Senate, 107,800 fewer households would receive rental assistance. The loss of these vouchers would disproportionately affect older adults, people with disabilities, and families with children.
Take Action
Use NLIHC’s toolkits and resources to take action on FY26 funding, including by:
- Using NLIHC’s advocacy toolkit, “Opposing Cuts to Federal Investments in Affordable Housing,” to call on Congress to protect and expand affordable housing and homelessness resources, including NLIHC’s priorities:
- Full funding to renew all existing tenant-based voucher contracts, to ensure the people and families who rely on an HCV or EHV to keep a roof over their heads do not lose their assistance. Check out the “EHV Funding Cliff Mobilization Toolkit” for more information, including talking points and resources.
- $4.922 billion for HUD’s Homeless Assistance Grants (HAG) program, and for HUD to stick to its commitment to a two-year Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) for the Continuum of Care Program.
- $5.7 billion for public housing operations, and at least $5 billion to address public housing capital needs.
- $15 million for the Eviction Protection Grant Program (EPGP), as provided in the Senate’s spending bill.
- At least $1.3 billion for HUD’s Indian Housing Block Grant (IHBG) program and $150 million for IHBG-Competitive funds, targeted to Tribes with the greatest needs.
The toolkit includes talking points, advocacy materials, engagement ideas, and more resources for advocates to weigh-in with their members of Congress on the importance of these vital resources!
- Emailing or calling members’ offices to tell them about the importance of affordable housing, homelessness, and community development resources to you, your family, your community, or your work. You can use NLIHC’s Take Action page to look up your member offices or call/send an email directly!
- Sharing stories of those directly impacted by homelessness and housing instability. Storytelling adds emotional weight to your message and can help lawmakers see how their policy decisions impact actual people. Learn about how to tell compelling stories with this resource.
National, state, local, Tribal, and territorial organizations can also join over 2,800 organizations on CHCDF’s national letter calling on Congress to support the highest level of funding possible for affordable housing, homelessness, and community development resources in FY26.
Visit NLIHC’s Advocacy Hub for more information and resources that can help you take action and help protect the affordable housing programs people rely on.