The timing is complicated by House rules that require 72 hours for bills to be considered.
Congressional leaders and the White House have reached an agreement on how to fund the Department of Homeland Security, one of the final hurdles to thwarting Friday's looming deadline for a partial government shutdown, but the deal cannot be reached in time. there is a possibility.
Funding DHS was the last major hurdle in negotiating six spending bills that must be passed to avoid a shutdown. Details of the negotiations have not yet been disclosed.
The DHS funding agreement clears the way for lawmakers to begin processing a spending package in time to meet Friday's deadline to avoid a partial government shutdown. Agreement has been reached on the remaining six government funding bills, Congressional leaders confirmed.
“We have reached an agreement on DHS spending, which will allow us to complete the fiscal year 2024 spending process,” Chairman Mike Johnson said. “The House and Senate committees have begun drafting the text of the bill, which will be ready for presentation and consideration by the full House and Senate as soon as possible.”
But with negotiators still finalizing the details and the legal text of a complete deal yet to emerge, lawmakers are working around the clock to block the shutdown. The House has rules that require lawmakers to consider bills for 72 hours before voting. The Senate may also take several days to process bills passed by the House. That means a vote may not take place until the weekend or weekends, raising the possibility of a government shutdown unless Johnson speeds up the process.
Another problem is that the funding deal could face pushback from some hardline House Republicans. The House Freedom Caucus, which is made up of many of the House's most conservative members, urged its members to reject the spending bill, saying, “Otherwise, Republicans will be more aggressive with Biden's 'open borders' policies.” “We will provide funding,” he said, referring to DHS. said its members in a letter Monday.
Senate leaders expressed optimism on the Senate floor Tuesday that the government funding deal could avoid a partial government shutdown, but said significant cooperation would be needed to prevent it from expiring, at least in the short term. Stated.
Majority Leader Chuck Schumer called the agreement “good news.”
“It's a very good sign to start the week by announcing this agreement. But let me be clear: We have a lot of work to do in the coming days,” Schumer said. “If both sides proceed in the same manner they did two weeks ago, quickly and constructively without unnecessary partisan bickering, we hope that we can complete the appropriations process without degrading government services. ”
He continued: “We haven't had a government shutdown since 2019. There is no good reason to shut down this week now that we are nearing completion.”
In separate remarks, Minority Leader Mitch McConnell thanked appropriators for their work on the package, but also warned of the cooperation needed to get things done. .
“This week, the Senate faces another challenge in completing the annual appropriations process, and the risks to America's security at home and abroad could not be greater,” McConnell said.
President Joe Biden said Tuesday that he would “immediately sign” the package if Congress approves it.
The shutdown threat was the latest in a series of challenges for Mr Johnson, who maintains a slim margin in the House of Commons.
Congress has imposed at least partial government shutdowns five times since October. During these votes, Mr. Johnson was forced to rely on House Democratic votes to prevent a shutdown, which led to a conflict between his predecessor Kevin McCarthy and the party and led to Mr. Johnson's ouster last year. This was a contributing factor.
ABC News' Sarah Beth Hensley contributed to this report.
