Biden Signs Temporary Government Funding Bill, Narrowly Averting A Shutdown

On Thursday, President Joe Biden signed a temporary government funding bill, narrowly preventing a government shutdown. However, this move postpones a bigger dispute over spending to be addressed by Congress early next year.

With final approval from the Senate occurring late Wednesday, just 48 hours before the midnight deadline for a shutdown on Friday, the bill provides financial support for various areas such as military projects, veteran affairs, transportation, housing and the Energy Department until January 19. Additionally, the funding covers other government agencies until February 2.

The measure received broad support from both the House and Senate, guaranteeing that the government will remain operational until after the holiday season. This could potentially provide lawmakers with additional time to address their substantial disagreements regarding government spending for the present fiscal year.

Biden signed the bill in San Francisco while hosting the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit.

The spending package maintains the current level of government funding for approximately two additional months as negotiations for a long-term package continue.

It divides the deadlines for approving full-year appropriations bills into two different dates: January 19 for certain federal agencies and February 2 for others. This will result in two separate occasions where there will be a potential for a partial government shutdown.

The spending bill omits the White House’s nearly $106 billion proposal for providing aid to Israel and Ukraine during wartime. It also lacks provisions for humanitarian funding for Palestinians and other additional requests like funding for border security.