U.S. Senate passes short-term funding bill to avert government shutdown before midterm elections

The U.S. Senate voted 90-6 on August 8, 2026 to pass a short-term funding bill extending federal operations through December 11, 2026, aiming to avert a government shutdown before the November midterms. The bill blocks a White House rule giving political appointees control over federal grants and restricts funding transfers to the Border Patrol. However, it delays a ban on intoxicating hemp products, sparking GOP disputes. The House, which passed a December 4 extension, must reconcile its version with the Senate's before September 30.

Senate short-term funding bill passage

• ▪Six senators voted against the stopgap funding bill on August 8, 2026: Bill Cassidy, Tim Kaine, Ed Markey, Rand Paul, Bernie Sanders, and Elizabeth Warren.
• ▪Senator Darline Graham voted present on the stopgap funding bill because it included a death benefit to the heir of her late brother, Senator Lindsey Graham.
• ▪The U.S. Senate voted 90-6 early on August 8, 2026 to pass a short-term funding bill that extends federal government funding through December 11, 2026.
• ▪The Senate's early-August passage of the stopgap funding bill occurred nearly two months before the September 30, 2026 fiscal deadline to avoid a shutdown during the midterm campaign season.

Hemp-derived THC ban delay dispute

• ▪The Senate voted 61 to 32 to table an amendment by Senator Ted Budd that aimed to strip the hemp ban delay from the short-term funding bill.
• ▪The Senate funding bill contains a provision requested by the White House that delays the implementation of a national ban on most intoxicating hemp products by one month.
• ▪Senator Ted Budd opposed the hemp ban delay, citing a 10-fold increase in cannabis-related emergency room visits by minors in North Carolina since 2017.

Federal grant control freeze provision

• ▪The White House Office of Management and Budget defended its proposed grant rule, stating it is intended to improve accountability and prevent taxpayer money from being wasted.
• ▪Senate Appropriations Chair Susan Collins opposed the White House grant rule, calling it deeply flawed and stating that it would politicize the grant-making process.
• ▪The Senate funding bill includes a provision to temporarily block a White House budget office rule that would give executive branch political appointees greater authority over distributing federal grants.

Border security funding restrictions

• ▪The Senate funding bill includes a provision demanded by Democrats that prevents the Trump administration from reallocating federal funds to the Border Patrol or Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
• ▪The Senate funding bill rejected a White House request for $1 billion to fund early work on a new Trump-class battleship announced by the administration.

House-Senate reconciliation requirements

• ▪The House and Senate must reconcile their differing stopgap bills and pass identical legislation before the September 30, 2026 deadline to avert a government shutdown.
• ▪Representative John Rutherford stated that the Senate's restriction on border security funding could be a dealbreaker for House passage of the stopgap measure.
• ▪The House of Representatives passed its own short-term funding measure in July 2026, which extends federal funding through December 4, 2026, rather than the Senate's December 11 date.