WASHINGTON – Congress has agreed to extend the government’s budget through Dec. 20, congressional leaders announced Sunday, likely postponing the issue as lawmakers try to avert a devastating government shutdown.
The agreement averts a government shutdown that was scheduled to begin at midnight on September 30, ensures Americans maintain access to vital government services and avoids an embarrassing political gaffe just weeks before the presidential election.
“If both sides continue to work in good faith, I am hopeful we can complete work on the CR this week, well ahead of the September 30 deadline. Bipartisan cooperation in both chambers will be key to completing the work this week,” Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, R-N.Y., said in a statement Sunday.
The House of Representatives is scheduled to vote on a funding extension, known as a continuing resolution, on Wednesday. The Senate is expected to take up the measure soon after in an effort to avert a shutdown. The measure is expected to pass both chambers and be signed by President Joe Biden.
Still, the country is not out of the woods yet: Lawmakers must negotiate a long-term agreement after the election, setting up new political battles in the final weeks before Congress changes hands and a new president takes over the White House.
House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-Louisiana, announced the plan in a letter to House members early Sunday, in which he also noted the tricky political tightrope Congress must navigate ahead of the election.
“History teaches us, and current polls prove, that shutting down the government with less than 40 days until a fateful election would be political malfeasance,” Johnson said in the letter.
The agreement between the Republican-controlled House and Democratic-controlled Senate came after Johnson failed in an effort to pass a six-month extension that would have included a measure requiring proof of citizenship to vote, an effort that was not included in the agreement announced Sunday.
The bill was destined to fail in the Senate: Democrats argued that voting by foreign nationals is already illegal and extremely rare, and that the bill could instead make it harder for millions of Americans who don’t have easy access to citizenship documents to vote.
Former President Donald Trump has urged Republicans to authorize a government shutdown if they cannot pass a voting bill, arguing that it could affect the outcome of the presidential election.
Schumer again criticized the Republican effort on Sunday, saying, “I’m pleased that bipartisan negotiations led to a swift government funding deal without budget cuts or poison pills, but this same deal could have been made two weeks ago. Instead, Speaker Johnson has followed MAGA play and wasted valuable time.”
Sunday’s agreement excludes the controversial voting bill but proposes $231 million in additional funding for the U.S. Secret Service. The budget comes after a gunman attempted to assassinate Trump by grazing him by the ear in July and another man was found lying in wait just outside the fence of a Florida golf course where Trump was playing this month.
What happens if the government shuts down?
During the government shutdown, federal employees classified as “non-essential” will be sent home and will receive their pay once the government reopens. “Essential” employees — those needed to maintain the most essential elements of the federal government’s functioning — will continue to work and receive their pay.
Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid benefits are deemed essential and will continue, though it may be harder to reach them for help during the shutdown. Other important benefit programs, like veterans programs and food programs, will also continue.
The U.S. military and federal law enforcement agencies, including the FBI, Drug Enforcement Administration and prison officials, as well as the Secret Service, Coast Guard and Border Patrol, will also continue to operate.
National parks and monuments would be closed to the public, and other government services like passport and visa assistance could be harder to obtain during the closures, and child care programs like Head Start would face funding shortages.
Airport security guards and air traffic controllers will continue to work, but their absence could cause airline delays.
Article contributed by Reuters