Congress Approves Funding Bill to Prevent October Shutdown, Postponing Budget Battle Until After Midterms

POLICY WIRE — Washington, USA — The House has approved a funding bill to extend government operations into December, successfully preventing a shutdown as the campaign season heats up before the November midterm elections.

The Senate had already passed the short-term, bipartisan funding bill in early August before its five-week break. The House, which resumed sessions on Monday, passed the bill with a 370 to 48 vote after Republican leaders expedited the process, necessitating a two-thirds majority for approval.

Government funding is now scheduled to expire on December 11, well after the midterm elections that will determine the balance of power in both the House and Senate for the next two years.

Since April, the House Appropriations Committee has moved forward with all 12 annual appropriations bills that fund the federal government. Three of these have been approved by the full House. However, progress has stalled in the Senate, where none of the funding measures have advanced beyond the Senate Appropriations Committee.

House Majority Leader Steve Scalise, a Republican from Louisiana, stated on Tuesday, We aim for a longer-term agreement, but at the very least, let’s make sure the government remains properly funded and operational.

Tom Cole, a Republican representative from Oklahoma and chairman of the House Appropriations Committee, expressed skepticism about whether the extension would provide sufficient time for Congress to pass full-year legislation. He criticized Senate Democrats, saying, The Senate has wasted the entire year and a half. They have not passed a single bill. there is no excuse for not having a single one done.

Cole suggested that Congress may face a yearlong stopgap measure or a shutdown in December if the impasse continues. “We’re going to be in a crunch time,” he warned.

Without a stopgap measure, a shutdown seemed inevitable after funding was set to lapse on September 30. Such a shutdown would not only affect everyday Americans but could also disrupt lawmakers’ campaign schedules. Congress is expected to be out of session for most of October, allowing members to campaign in their home districts.

The House initially passed a Republican-led bill in July to extend funding at current levels until December 4. This bill received minimal support from House Democrats, who sought restrictions on Border Patrol funding. The Senate subsequently passed a bipartisan measure to extend the deadline to December 11, incorporating several Democratic demands, including closing a loophole that Democrats claimed allowed the Trump administration to transfer funds to Border Patrol and temporarily preventing political appointees from canceling federal grants.

Rosa DeLauro, a Democrat from Connecticut and the top Democrat on the House Appropriations Committee, urged Democrats to support the stopgap measure during their weekly caucus meeting on Tuesday, according to Pete Aguilar, a representative from California and chair of the House Democratic Caucus. that is a significant statement from the ranking member, Aguilar remarked.

Reporting by Policy-Wire (PW)