The House easily cleared a stopgap spending bill Tuesday that would keep federal agencies funded through Dec. 11, avoiding the risk of a partial government shutdown this fall.
On a lopsided vote of 370-48, the House sent to President Donald Trump’s desk a short-term funding patch despite objections from hard-line conservatives over various policy concerns. The Senate passed the measure on a 90-6 vote early last month and Trump was expected to sign it in short order.
Tuesday’s House vote marked the earliest completion in recent memory of a continuing resolution that is typically passed in late September or later, as Congress scrambles to head off a shutdown when the new fiscal year begins without full-year appropriations in place. Current funding is set to expire on Sept. 30.
Lawmakers often seek to hold up the must-pass CR to exert leverage to win concessions from leadership on their own policy priorities. But this year’s swift passage signaled a determination by both parties to avoid a politically perilous shutdown in the run-up to the November midterm elections.
Republicans voted 193-19 for the bill, while Democrats backed it 176-29.
