After congressional leaders failed to pass FY 2019 appropriations for most departments of the federal government before the end of FY 2018, they passed a continuing resolution to extend FY 2018 appropriations for those departments through 12/7/18 (see *H.R. 6157 of 6/20/18 for the continuing resolution and *H.R. 1625 of 3/20/18 for FY2018 appropriations). When they again failed to reach a compromise, they passed this joint resolution, extending FY 2018 appropriation for those departments again, this time through 12/21/18.
Amid the ensuing negotiations over an omnibus appropriations bill in mid-12/2018, there were numerous reports that some members of Congress were working to include in the bill several of the major pro-Israel bills that were introduced earlier in the 115th Congress. These included the Israel Anti-Boycott Act (S. 720 and H.R. 1697 of 3/23/17), the Anti-Semitism Awareness Act (S. 2940 and H.R. 5924 of 5/23/18), and the Palestinian Partnership Fund Act (H.R. 7060 of 10/12/18 and S. 3549 of 10/4/18). However, congressional leaders ultimately rejected President Trump’s demand for $5 billion in funding for a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border, resulting in a government shutdown that lasted through the end of the session. Work on these measures and FY 2019 funding resumed in the opening weeks of the 116th Congress.