Federal courts run out of funds as government shutdown drags on

The U.S. Courts announced Friday that funding for the judicial branch has lapsed and that courts will begin limiting their operations next week, as the government shutdown nears three weeks.

The judiciary said at the beginning of the government shutdown it would continue normal operations through Friday using “court fee balances and other funds not dependent on a new appropriation,” but because Congress has yet to pass government funding legislation for fiscal 2026, the courts announced they have run out of funding allowing them to continue full operations.