House passes stopgap funding measure to avoid federal government shutdown

The House on Friday passed a stopgap funding measure to keep the federal government open until at least mid-December.

The continuing resolution measure was approved by a 232-193 margin with a majority-Democratic vote. The approval came a day after the Senate passed the same resolution in a down-to-the-wire vote.

President Joe Biden signed it into law on Friday.

If the resolution had not been passed, the government would have shut down due to Friday evening’s deadline for approval of the upcoming federal budget.

Funding in the resolution includes approximately $12 billion in emergency aid for Ukraine, $18.8 billion for the FEMA Disaster Relief Fund, and $1 billion for heating and utility assistance.

The bill, which will fund the government until December 16, needed to pass before negotiations for the final 2023 budget could continue.

“While I am disappointed that we could not complete full appropriations this month, I am glad that we were able to include key funding provisions in this continuing resolution that address critical needs,” House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, D-Md., said Friday.

The resolution had stalled in Congress until Thursday due to objections by Republicans and progressive Democrats over language that if approved would have sped up the federal process for issuing permits for big energy projects, including pipelines and electrical lines.

The bill moved forward after Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., agreed to strike the language.