March 14, 2025, looms as an important deadline in the middle of President Trump’s first 100 days in office, a milestone often used to evaluate the effectiveness of a new President. March 14 is the day that the American Relief Act, 2025 (Public Law 118-158), which provides temporary funding for the federal government, expires. The law was enacted during the 118th Congress and signed into law by President Biden. At the time, some questioned whether having government funding expire during President Trump’s first 100 days in office was a good idea. Now, Republicans, who control the White House, Senate, and House of Representatives, need to pass legislation to avoid a government shutdown on March 15, and may need Democratic support to do so. The question is, at what cost?

Government funding is not the only thing that expires March 14, 2025. The National Flood Insurance Program was extended through March 14, 2025, and will also expire if not extended, as will Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF), which provides benefits to families in need. Congress also needs to raise the debt limit, but not necessarily within this same timeframe.

Simultaneous with figuring out how to fund the federal government for the remainder of Fiscal Year 2025, the Republican-led Congress also is working on legislation to enact President Trump’s priority issues, including extending the 2017 tax provisions, providing money for border security, and addressing immigration. Making matters more challenging, leadership in the House of Representatives and Senate are taking sharply different approaches to developing such legislation. Adding one more degree of difficulty to this legislative effort, House Republicans in the last Congress needed Democrats to vote for the legislation for it to pass. What is unknown this time is whether Democrats will vote in sufficient numbers with Republicans to fund the government and, if so, what concessions they will be able to gain from Republicans to secure their support.

I wrote in December that slim majorities will test Republican unity in the 119th Congress. The looming March 14, 2025, deadline combined with the desire to pass legislation to enact President Trump’s priorities early in 2025, present an interesting test of Republican unity, and may present out-of-power Democrats with sufficient leverage to gain concessions to win their support. The next few weeks will provide a fascinating look at what to expect for the remainder of the 119th Congress.