The House passed a bipartisan package of three spending bills on Thursday that would fund parts of the federal government through September, demonstrating the eagerness of lawmakers to avoid another government shutdown near the end of the month.
Congress has so far passed only three of the 12 annual spending bills that fund federal agencies for the current fiscal year. Failure to pass the remainder before a Jan. 30th deadline risks another shutdown just weeks after the record-setting, 43-day shutdown that occurred late last year.
Leaders from both parties endorsed the latest measure, signaling that passage is likely in the Senate as well, belatedly getting Congress halfway home in completing their work on this year’s spending bills. The White House also has endorsed the measure, calling it a “fiscally responsible bill.”
The package covers such agencies as the Interior Department, the Environmental Protection Agency, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the Departments of Commerce and Justice. It passed by an overwhelming vote of 397-28, an unusual display of unity when it comes to government spending.
The price tag of the bills, which Republicans put at roughly $175 billion, comes in below current levels, generating savings for taxpayers, GOP lawmakers said. Democrats countered that they were able to negotiate spending levels far above what the Trump administration had requested and removed scores of policy riders that they say would have weakened gun safety regulations, expanded oil and gas leasing on federal lands and took aim at LGBTQ and racial equity policies.
