The Shutdown Was Avoided, But Agencies Can’t Exactly Celebrate

Federal agencies narrowly avoided the catastrophe of a government shutdown this week, but budget experts say they will still feel the pain of congressional stalemates.

President Obama on Wednesday signed a “clean” continuing resolution, a temporary measure to keep agencies funded for 10 weeks at their fiscal 2015 levels. Unlike a full year appropriation, however, the CR does not detail how much agencies should spend on each program or office.

Agencies are expected to spend their funds at the same rates as the previous year, but the lack of a long-term agreement creates uncertainty. Starting new projects is impossible, and spending freely is difficult for agencies awaiting their full year fiscal fates.

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