In September, when we last faced a potential lapse in U.S. government funding, I urged Congress to reach a bipartisan agreement on appropriations for Fiscal Year 2025. Congress's passage of another Continuing Resolution avoids the dire impact that yet another avoidable and unnecessary government shutdown would have had on the Department of Defense, U.S. national security, and our military families.
As we look ahead to the holiday season, I’m relieved that we can continue to pay our brave troops and our dedicated civilian workforce. However, this is the 48th Continuing Resolution in the past 15 years. Cumulatively, the Department has operated under a Continuing Resolution for just under five of the past 15 years — which means that we have spent a third of that period waiting on appropriations rather than moving forward with critical new projects. Being forced to rely on stopgap, temporary funding measures hamstrings the Department's ability to plan for the future, bolster our ranks with new recruits, and tackle new challenges to American security.