Newsroom

September 28, 2016

Congress passes government spending bill, averts shutdown

Congress on Wednesday finalized a deal to keep the government funded through Dec. 9, averting a government shutdown that would have occurred after Friday. The House and Senate are now in recess until after the Nov. 8 elections.

"This is a positive for credit unions and their members," said NAFCU Vice President of Legislative Affairs Brad Thaler. "A government shutdown had the potential to disrupt military pay, government benefit systems and pay for hundreds of thousands of federal government workers."

In action Tuesday, the Senate fell five votes short of the total needed to move forward on the government spending bill, which contains funding for flood relief to states such as Maryland, Texas, West Virginia and Louisiana, plus $1.1 billion to help stop the spread of the Zika virus. Most Senate Democrats refused to vote for the bill because it did not contain funds to help with the water crisis in Flint, Mich., over lead content.

This led to leaders from the House and Senate working Tuesday night and Wednesday on a deal authorizing $170 million in the "Water Resources Development Act," which covers hundreds of federal water projects, to address the crisis in Flint. The water bill will likely be addressed during the lame-duck session following the elections.