US House Of Representatives Passes Legislation To Prevent Government Shutdown

A government shutdown would disrupt a wide range of services, from law enforcement to national parks, and halt paychecks for millions of federal workers.

The votes come after President-elect Donald Trump and his billionaire adviser Elon Musk criticised it.

Source : File Photo

The Republican-controlled US House of Representatives passed legislation to prevent a midnight government shutdown on Friday, defying President-elect Donald Trump's call to approve trillions of dollars in new debt.

According to Reuters, following this, the Democratic-controlled Senate would need to pass the bill to ensure the government will be funded beyond Saturday when the current funding would expire. The White House said President Joe Biden intends to sign it into law if they do.

Majority Leader Chuck Schumer posted on X that he is “confident” the Senate will vote to avert a shutdown and hopes “to get it passed as soon as possible.”

The legislation would extend government funding until March 14, provide $100 billion for disaster-hit states and $10 billion for farmers. It would not raise the debt ceiling which is a difficult task Trump has pushed Congress to do before he takes office on January 20.

House Speaker Mike Johnson stated that Republicans would have greater leverage to shape government spending next year, as they will hold majorities in both chambers of Congress and Trump will occupy the White House.

"This was a necessary step to bridge the gap, to put us into that moment where we can put our fingerprints on the final decisions on spending," he said after the vote, as per Reuters. He said Trump supported the package.

A government shutdown would disrupt a wide range of services, from law enforcement to national parks, and halt paychecks for millions of federal workers. A travel industry trade group warned that such a shutdown could cost airlines, hotels, and other businesses $1 billion per week and lead to widespread disruptions during the busy Christmas season. Authorities warned travellers could face long lines at airports.  

The package passed with a bipartisan vote of 366-34, closely mirrored an earlier bipartisan plan that was abandoned earlier in the week following online criticism from Trump and his billionaire adviser Elon Musk. They argued the plan included too many unrelated provisions, such as a pay raise for lawmakers and stricter regulations on pharmacy benefit managers, as per Reuters.

Republicans struck most of those elements from the bill, including a provision limiting investments in China which Democrats said would have conflicted with Musk's interests.

Trump has tasked Musk with heading a budget-cutting task force, but Musk holds no official position in Washington.

Musk wrote on his social media platform X that he was happy with the package. "It went from a bill that weighed pounds to a bill that weighed ounces," he posted.

Trump's demands to lift the debt ceiling were resoundingly rejected by the House, including 38 Republicans on Thursday. The federal government spent roughly $6.2 trillion last year and has more than $36 trillion in debt, and Congress will need to act to authorise further borrowing by the middle of next year.