WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Kevin Cramer (R-ND), a Senate Budget Committee member, issued the following statement on Congress passing a Continuing Resolution (CR) today to fund the government through December 11:

“The only option worse than a Continuing Resolution is a government shutdown. It hamstrings our military and creates uncertainty throughout the federal government. I am grateful there won’t be a shutdown, but I hope we can come together and pass a real appropriations bill.”

While imperfect, the Continuing Resolution contains several of Senator Cramer’s priorities, including an extension of the National Flood Insurance Program through September 30, 2021, funding for FEMA’s Disaster Relief Fund, and a replenishment of the Commodity Credit Corporation which is used to fund necessary farm assistance programs. Senator Cramer denounced Democrats for excluding this funding in their first bill text.

“Credit to Senator Hoeven and our colleagues Senators Ernst and Boozman for securing this assistance for our agricultural community despite Democrats’ objections,” said Senator Cramer.

The CR also provides a one-year extension authorizing appropriations for federal surface transportation programs, through September 30, 2021. These programs were most recently authorized under the FAST Act, which expires on September 30, 2020.

“Extending these transportation programs gives the North Dakota Department of Transportation another year of certainty,” said Senator Cramer.“Hopefully the full Senate will take up the bipartisan, long-term solution we wrote and approved in the EPW Committee. Our nation’s infrastructure should not be hamstrung by an uncertain patchwork of continuing resolutions.”

Last July, Senator Cramer and his colleagues on the Senate Environment and Public Works (EPW) Committee unanimously passed the America’s Transportation Infrastructure Act, the largest highway reauthorization in history. Learn more here.

Click here for text of the CR.