USA No shutdown: US parliament votes in favor of temporary solution
The US House of Representatives has passed a short-term stopgap budget bill, averting an imminent government shutdown. Without an agreement, employees in parts of the public administration, among others, would no longer have been paid from next Tuesday. US President Joe Biden still has to sign the law.
26.09.2024, 07:21
SDA
The law now maintains funding for government agencies until December 20 - i.e. beyond the presidential election on November 5. Spending will continue at the level of the previous budget. The law provides for short-term spending increases in various areas, such as support for the secret service following the two attempted attacks on Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump. The final spending decisions have been postponed and will not be made until after the elections.
The Senate approved the measure on Wednesday by 78 votes to 18, i.e. with the support of Democrats and Republicans, shortly after the House of Representatives passed it without any problems. Many members of parliament are facing intense weeks of campaigning in their home states and districts, as November will not only see a decision on the successor to outgoing President Joe Biden, but also on the redistribution of all seats in the House of Representatives and a third of the seats in the Senate.
The political wrangling over the budget is a regular occurrence in the USA. As a rule, Congress helps itself by passing interim budgets - and then fights again a few months later over the funding of government operations.
