Advocacy Glossary
Continuing resolution (CR)
A continuing resolution is a stopgap law that keeps the government funded at existing levels when Congress has not finished its annual appropriations bills by the fiscal year deadline.
A CR freezes funding in place, usually for weeks or months, and buys time for negotiation. New programs generally cannot start under a CR, and agencies delay decisions until real funding arrives.
For advocates, a CR means the real spending decisions are still ahead. The meetings that matter continue right through the stopgap period.
Related terms
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