Last Saturday, President Donald Trump signed a six-month funding measure to keep the government operating through Sept. 30, averting a government shutdown. The continuing resolution that completed the funding for the fiscal year 2025 budget cleared the Senate on Friday when Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) said he would not stand in the way of the bill advancing.

Senate Democrats could have forced a shutdown by refusing to vote for cloture, which ends debate on legislation and is needed to advance a measure and avoid a filibuster. Sixty votes are needed in the Senate to end debate. With 53 seats, Republicans needed some Democrats to vote for cloture. The final cloture vote was 62-38, with 10 Democrats and Independents voting with Schumer and Senator Rand Paul (R-KY) the lone Republican voting against proceeding on the bill.

With government funding assured, House and Senate Republicans hope to pass comprehensive tax legislation before their August recess. However, Senate and House Republican leadership differ on major policy issues and have yet to agree on a unified strategy to advance a bill. House Ways and Means Committee members have met to finalize legislative language for a budget reconciliation bill but are struggling with the spending caps imposed by the budget resolution passed earlier in the year.