(WISH) — It could be a busy September for U.S. lawmakers as they race to avoid a government shutdown.

The Senate returns Tuesday, and the House will reconvene next week. The two chambers only have a few weeks to resolve their differences over funding the government. The current budget ends on Sept. 30.

According to a CNN report, House Speaker Kevin McCarthy is urging his colleagues to back a short-term spending deal to avoid a shutdown. He says they need to focus their energy on the larger funding fight later in the fall.

Paul Helmke is a professor of public and environmental affairs at Indiana University. He explains some of the impacts Americans could expect to see if the government can’t reach a deal.

“But if you’re dealing with the government for some reason, you need your passport renewed, you have friends that are applying for citizenship status here, you have questions with your IRS refund or about your taxes, you’re planning to go visit a national park, all those things could be impacted because the people that are in charge of dealing with those things won’t be on the job.

“If the shutdown goes for more than a few days, it could end up impacting the economy significantly. It could affect the nation’s credit rating.”