Congress on Thursday approved a measure to avoid a government shutdown, delay key deadlines and buy more time to finalize a larger funding agreement.
Facing a weekend deadline, the House passed a bill to temporarily fund one set of federal agencies through March 8 and another set through March 22. The project quickly moved to the Senate, which approved it on Thursday evening, by a vote of 77 to 13. The bill now goes to President Joe Biden to sign into law before Saturday's deadline.
“When we approve this bill, we will, thank God, have avoided a shutdown with all its harmful effects on the American people,” Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, Democrat of New York, said just before the vote.
Without action, some agencies, including the Department of Agriculture, will partially close early Saturday. The remaining agencies, including the Pentagon, will partially close after March 8.
Meanwhile, Congress will aim to pass packages of legislation to fund the government for the remainder of the budget year.
Investors may not be harmed by the short shutdown, as SPX shares rose during previous government shutdowns. But farmers will lose access to loans, initial public offerings may halt, and American soldiers and other federal employees will remain without pay.
is reading: How a government shutdown could affect you and your finances
Republicans control the House by only a narrow margin, and House Speaker Mike Johnson had to rely on Democrats to help pass the stopgap spending measure. It was approved by the House of Representatives by a vote of 320 to 99.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
