The stopgap spending law that President Donald Trump signed on Sept. 2 runs out on Dec. 11, leaving Trump and the outgoing Congress about five weeks to agree on new funding or risk a shutdown. The American Association of Colleges of Osteopathic Medicine reported that the continuing resolution, H.R. 6500, funds the government through Dec. 11. Fox News wrote that “government funding evaporates on Dec. 11,” which “could trigger a shutdown,” and the date falls in the lame-duck session that follows Tuesday’s midterm elections.
Republicans still control both chambers for now. Fox News’s Chad Pergram wrote that Democrats “will control the keys to the congressional car early next year,” and that what Congress can accomplish before then is “unclear.” Many lawmakers are retiring or lost their races, he noted, so attendance could be a problem during the lame duck.
For people who depend on federal money, the question is what keeps arriving if the two sides miss the date. Social Security and Medicare checks, federal paychecks, IRS refunds and tax help all react differently when funding lapses. The answers below come from a Kiplinger guide to shutdown effects published Oct. 1, 2025, which describes how a shutdown works in general.
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What does the stopgap law cover, and why Dec. 11?
The House passed H.R. 6500 on Sept. 1, and Trump signed it the next day, ahead of the Sept. 30 funding deadline, according to the osteopathic medical colleges’ association. The resolution carries over “anomalies” from an earlier House version, H.R. 9770, and adds Senate provisions meant to win bipartisan support. It extends funding at current levels.
The same law postpones until Dec. 11 an Office of Management and Budget rule that overhauls the Uniform Guidance for federal grants, a delay the association called a win for groups worried about the rule’s impact. That means the grant rule and the government’s funding share one end date.
A summary of Congressional Research Service report R49353, posted on gov.house, says Congress must pass regular fiscal 2027 appropriations bills or another stopgap “to avoid a funding gap beginning on December 12, 2026.” The resolution has funded the government since Oct. 1, the start of fiscal 2027, and agencies without new money after Dec. 11 would face a gap that could halt some government operations.
Who controls Congress when the deadline arrives?
Control of the next Congress rests on projections. CBS News projected that Democrats won the Senate, and the Associated Press reported that the party won the House, with Democrats’ Senate total reaching 54 and leads in two other races, according to Al Jazeera. Several contests were still too close to call, and the counts remain unofficial until states certify them.
Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer and House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries said cutting costs is their first job. Schumer said, “We are going to work hard to drive costs down with the president or without him.” Trump, speaking after the results, said, “My message is, congratulations to the Democrats, and I look forward to working with you for the good of our country,” TheStreet reported.
Pergram wrote that Trump has signaled he will veto extreme measures from a Democratic-controlled Congress and has offered to work together on certain issues. He also wrote that progressive activists do not want Schumer and Jeffries “cutting deals with Republicans in the lame duck.” Speaker Mike Johnson, a Louisiana Republican, is signaling he will not run for minority leader, Fox reported, another sign of how much the leadership picture in the House is shifting before the deadline. The lame-duck agenda carries other deadlines too: Pergram said the surveillance law known as FISA Section 702 expired in the spring and that intelligence agencies want it reauthorized later this month.
Which payments keep coming if funding lapses?
Kiplinger’s guide said “Social Security and Medicare checks will keep coming” during a shutdown, though customer service may be slow and new applications may take longer.
Federal workers are in a different position. Furloughed employees go unpaid, and some employees in essential roles may work without pay, with back pay traditionally issued after the shutdown ends, Kiplinger said. It cited a Congressional Budget Office estimate of about 750,000 furloughed federal employees per day, and noted that active-duty military members also wait for pay while members of Congress and the president keep receiving salaries.
What happens to IRS refunds and tax help in a shutdown?
The IRS operates with reduced staff during a shutdown, Kiplinger said. Taxpayer services and audits pause, while revenue collection continues.
The guide said a shutdown that began around Oct. 1 could also affect extended returns due Oct. 15, and that a longer lapse could touch deadlines including tax-exempt returns due Nov. 17 and expatriate returns due Dec. 15 in the 2025 cycle it covered. Dec. 11 is a Friday, so a lapse would begin on Saturday, Dec. 12, the date the congressional research summary gives for the start of a funding gap. Anyone counting on an IRS answer, a refund inquiry or an agency appointment right after that date would be dealing with an agency running on reduced staff if no deal is reached.
What keeps paying in your household if funding lapses Dec. 12?
If the two sides miss Dec. 11, Social Security and Medicare payments are expected to keep arriving while furloughed federal workers wait for back pay and IRS help slows down. Households that lean on a federal paycheck, a refund or an agency answer are left to cover any gap themselves.
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This article was produced with AI assistance and edited for accuracy against the sources linked above.
David M. Keller is a finance writer based in Columbus, Ohio, covering personal finance and consumer-focused economic topics. He earned his degree in journalism from Ohio University and began his career reporting on local business and economic trends for a regional media outlet. Since then, he has contributed to a variety of online publications, focusing on clear, practical coverage of topics such as cost of living, debt, and everyday financial decision-making.
