The United States government was able to sidestep a partial shutdown after a $1.2 trillion spending bill was greenlighted by the Senate. The approval came after the lapse of a midnight deadline, which resulted in a brief, two-hour shutdown.
In the early hours of Saturday, the Senate approved the massive spending package with a 74-24 vote. However, this came after a midnight deadline had already passed, triggering a short-lived partial shutdown of the federal government.
Following its clearance in the Senate, the bill is now slated to proceed to President Biden for his signature, which is expected to take place on Saturday.
Prior to the Senate vote, the House of Representatives had given the spending bill its stamp of approval on Friday. Yet, a deadlock in the Senate over whether or not to vote on amendments to the bill stalled proceedings.
As the clock ticked closer to the deadline, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) announced that a consensus had been reached on a series of votes on amendments. However, none of these amendments succeeded in passing.
Despite the brief shutdown, the impact on government operations remained minimal. The Department of Defense, whose appropriations had expired at 11:59 p.m. EDT on March 22, 2024, issued a statement after the deadline was missed.
The stalemate over amendments threatened to cause a more prolonged shutdown. If amendments had been successfully added to the legislation, it would’ve necessitated the bill to return to the House for approval. However, the House had adjourned for a two-week recess on Friday afternoon.
This did not deter some Republicans, who were keen to force votes on amendments related to border security, immigration, Iran sanctions and the Laken Riley Act.
In response to the brief shutdown, the White House indicated that shutdown preparations had ceased upon senators reaching an agreement to hold the overnight vote.
Federal offices remained closed for the weekend, and many government agencies were fully funded due to previous ‘minibus’ legislation, which Biden had signed into law earlier this month. The impasse over amendments threatened a more prolonged shutdown.
When the second component passes, it will complete a topline $1.66 trillion spending agreement. This agreement was reached in January by House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) and Senate Majority Leader Schumer.
The spending bill addresses funding for the departments of Defense, Homeland Security, Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, State and the legislative branch. The lower chamber voted 286-134 to approve the 1,012-page bill, which funds these departments and entities until Sept. 30.
Supporters of the package from the GOP highlighted a $200 billion cut in federal spending over the next 10 years, including a $6 billion clawback of unused COVID-19 relief funds. Defense spending will see a $27 billion increase, including a 5.2% pay bump for US service members.
The package also includes $3.3 billion in continued funding for Israel and $300 million in Pentagon funding to aid Ukraine’s war effort.
Democrats approved of having rejected “right-wing” add-ons. “As far as I could tell, the overwhelming majority of right-wing policy riders have been rejected and are not part of the spending agreement, including in critical areas,” House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) said at a Thursday press conference.
This recent development follows the passage of an earlier six-bill, $467.5 billion ‘minibus’ on March 8. This funded the Departments of Veterans Affairs, Agriculture, Transportation, Commerce, Justice and Housing and Urban Development, as well as the Food and Drug Administration and military construction.
The second component completes a topline $1.66 trillion spending agreement that House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) reached in January, comprised of $886 billion in defense funding and $704 billion in non-defense discretionary funding.
