The House voted to approve a $1.2 trillion package of spending bills on Friday, just a few hours before funding for some key federal agencies is set to expire. This action was long overdue, nearly six months into the budget year, and will push any threats of a government shutdown to the fall.
The bill was passed by a vote of 286-134 and will now go to the Senate, where leaders hope for a final vote later Friday. More than 70% of the money would go to defense.
Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., brought the bill up under a streamlined process requiring two-thirds support for approval. The vote was very close, reflecting Republicans' anger over the content of the package and the speed with which it was brought to a vote.
Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., signaled more trouble ahead by initiating an effort to oust Johnson as the House began the vote. However, further action was postponed until the House returns in two weeks. This is the same tool used last year to remove the last Republican speaker, Kevin McCarthy of California.
The breakdown of the vote showed 101 Republicans voting for the bill and 112 voting against it. In contrast, 185 Democrats voted for the bill and 22 against.
The lawmakers could still miss the midnight deadline for funding the government, as action in the Senate could take time. However, the practical impact in the near term would be minimal. With most federal workers off duty over the weekend and many government services funded through earlier legislation, a shutdown would mostly pass without incident unless matters dragged into Monday.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said as the Senate opened for business, 'Democrats and Republicans have about 13 hours to work together to make sure the government stays open. That’s not going to be easy. We will have to work together and avoid unnecessary delays.'
Johnson divided this fiscal year’s spending bills into two parts as House Republicans revolted against the annual practice of asking them to vote for one massive, complex bill called an omnibus with little time to review it or face a shutdown. Johnson viewed that as a breakthrough, calling the bill 'the best achievable outcome in a divided government.'
However, the package was clearly unpopular with most Republicans, who saw it as containing too few of their policy priorities and as spending too much.
Rep. Eric Burlison, R-Mo., said, 'The bottom line is that this is a complete and utter surrender.'
The opponents particularly took issue with fellow Republicans voting for the bill and the actions of House GOP leadership. Rep. Andy Ogles, R-Tenn., went so far as to say 'it’s clear that the Democrats own the speaker’s gavel.'
It’s taken lawmakers six months into the current fiscal year to get near the finish line on government funding, with the process slowed by conservatives who pushed for more policy mandates and steeper spending cuts than a Democratic-led Senate or White House would consider. The impasse required several short-term, stopgap spending bills to keep agencies funded as negotiations continued.
Rep. Kay Granger, the Republican head of the House Appropriations Committee, resigned from that position after the vote. She stated she would remain on the committee to offer advice and serve as a mentor for colleagues when necessary.
Democratic leaders persuaded members to support the bill by emphasizing that they were able to resist hundreds of policy requirements and significant spending reductions.
“This is a positive outcome for the American people in terms of advocating for their health, safety, education, national security, and most importantly, their economic well-being,” Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries remarked.
The initial set of full-year spending bills, which funded the Veterans Affairs, Agriculture, and Interior departments, among others, passed through Congress two weeks ago just before funding expired for those agencies.
Upon combining the two packages, discretionary spending for the budget year will total around $1.66 trillion. This does not encompass programs like Social Security and Medicare, or the financing of the country’s increasing debt.
In order to gain support from Republicans, Johnson highlighted some of the secured spending increases for approximately 8,000 additional detention beds for migrants awaiting immigration proceedings or deportation. This reflects about a 24% increase from current levels. Additionally, GOP leadership emphasized more funds for hiring roughly 2,000 Border Patrol agents.
Subsequent to the vote, having clearly heard concerns from his conservative colleagues, Johnson stated he would engage in active discussions over the next two weeks to outline differences between the two parties regarding “the crisis at the Southern border that is harming numerous Americans.” He mentioned that bills would be proposed to address the issue.
Democrats, on the other hand, are highlighting a $1 billion rise for Head Start programs and new child care centers for military families. They also stressed a $120 million increase in cancer research funding and a $100 million increase for Alzheimer’s research.
“Let’s be clear, we had to work within very challenging overall numbers and fend off literally hundreds of extreme Republican proposals from the House, not to mention some unimaginable reductions,” stated Sen. Patty Murray, the Democratic head of the Senate Appropriations Committee. “But ultimately, this is a bill that will propel our country and our families forward.”
Sen. Susan Collins, the leading Republican on that committee, appealed to her GOP colleagues by stating that the bill’s spending on non-defense programs actually decreases even before factoring in inflation. She referred to the package as “conservative” and “carefully crafted.”
“These bills are not extravagant spending bills that are greatly outside the scope,” Collins remarked.
White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre urged the Senate to swiftly pass the spending bill.
“This bill is a compromise,” she stated. “Neither side obtained everything it desired.”
The spending in the bill closely aligns with an agreement that then-Speaker McCarthy reached with the White House in May 2023, which restricted spending for two years and suspended the debt ceiling until January 2025 so the federal government could continue meeting its financial obligations.
Shalanda Young, who is in charge of the White House Office of Management and Budget, informed lawmakers that the agreement from last year, now known as the Fiscal Responsibility Act, will help the federal government save about $1 trillion over the next ten years.
Both parties' members were frustrated by how long the process took and how the end result turned out exactly as many had predicted. They had been warning all along that the Republicans would not achieve most of the policy requirements they wanted or reduce spending beyond what McCarthy and the White House had agreed upon last year.
Rep. Don Bacon, a Republican from Nebraska, said, “People were living in a dream world thinking, ‘Well, we’re going to do something different than what McCarthy had an agreement with the president on.’”