The U.S. Congress passed spending legislation early on Saturday in a down-to-the-wire burst of activity to avert a destabilizing government shutdown ahead of the busy holiday travel season.
The Democratic-controlled Senate in an 85-11 vote passed the bill to continue government funding 38 minutes after it expired at midnight. The government did not invoke shutdown procedures in the interim.
The package had earlier cleared the Republican-controlled House of Representatives with bipartisan support.
U.S. President Joe Biden signed the bill into law Saturday.
The late-night vote capped a frantic week that saw president-elect Donald Trump and his billionaire ally Elon Musk defeat an initial bipartisan deal, throwing Congress into disarray.
The U.S. Congress passed a spending legislation early Saturday morning, averting a destabilizing government shutdown ahead of the busy holiday travel season. In an 85-11 vote, the Democratic-controlled Senate passed the bill to continue government funding 38 minutes after it expired at midnight.
The final version stripped out some provisions championed by Democrats, who accused Republicans of caving in to pressure from an unelected billionaire who has no experience in government.
Congress did not act on Trump’s demand to raise the debt ceiling, a politically difficult task, before he takes office on Jan. 20.
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 authorize further borrowing by the middle of next year.
The legislation extends government funding until March 14, and provides $100 billion US for disaster-hit states and $10 billion US for farmers.
House Speaker Mike Johnson said Republicans would have more power to influence government spending next year, when they will have majorities in both chambers of Congress and Trump will be in 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 told reporters after the vote. He said Trump supported the package.
A government shutdown would have disrupted everything from law enforcement to national parks and suspended paycheques for millions of federal workers.
A travel industry trade group warned that a shutdown would cost airlines, hotels and other companies $1 billion US per week and lead to widespread disruptions during the busy Christmas season. Authorities warned that travellers would face long lines at airports.
The package resembled a bipartisan plan that was abandoned earlier this week after an online barrage from Trump and Musk, who said it contained too many unrelated provisions, such as a pay raise for lawmakers and a crackdown on pharmacy benefit managers.
Republicans struck most of those elements from the bill — including a provision limiting investments in China that Democrats said would have conflicted with Musk’s interests.
“He clearly does not want to answer questions about how much he plans to expand his businesses in China and how many American technologies he plans to sell,” Democratic Rep. Rosa DeLauro said on the House floor.
Musk happy with deal
Trump has tasked Musk, the world’s richest person, 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.
House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries said the package still accomplished important goals, such as delivering disaster aid, averting a shutdown and stopping Republicans from enacting a debt-ceiling hike that would make it easier to cut taxes.
“We have successfully advanced the needs of everyday Americans, but there are still things to be worked on and we look forward to that fight in the new year,” he told reporters.
Trump’s demand to increase the debt ceiling was resoundingly rejected by the House — including 38 Republicans — on Thursday.
Rep. Rich McCormick, one of 34 Republicans who voted against the bill, said it did nothing to change the nation’s fiscal trajectory and would only add to the debt load.
“We will be the country of the past if we continue doing what we’re doing,” he said.
The federal government last shut down for 35 days during Trump’s first term over a dispute about border security.
Previous fights over the debt ceiling have spooked financial markets, as a U.S. government default would send credit shocks around the world.
The limit has been suspended under an agreement that technically expires on Jan. 1, though lawmakers likely would not have had to tackle the issue before the spring.