The US lawmakers on Sunday (Jan 7) reached a $1.4 trillion deal over the total amount of spending for the rest of 2024 to avoid a partial government shutdown.
Both Republican and Democrat leaders at Capitol Hill agreed to the budget figure which includes $886 billion for defence and more than $704 billion for non-defence spending.
The signing of the deal was announced jointly by Chuck Schumer, the Democratic Senate majority leader, and Mike Johnson, the Republican Speaker of the House.
“While these final spending levels will not satisfy everyone, and they do not cut as much spending as many of us would like,” said Johnson in a letter to his colleagues.
“This deal does provide us a path to: 1) move the process forward; 2) reprioritise funding within the topline towards conservative objectives, instead of last year’s Schumer-Pelosi omnibus; and 3) fight for the important policy riders included in our House FY24 bills,” he added.
US President Joe Biden welcomed the deal, stating that the funding framework “moves us one step closer to preventing a needless government shutdown” whilst adding that it protects important national priorities.
Despite reaching the agreement on overall amount of spending, a section of Republicans are unhappy with the deal. The House Freedom Caucus, a conservative Republican group called the agreement a “total failure”.
“Sad to say but the spending epidemic in Washington continues with both parties being culpable,” said Andy Biggs, the former chief of the group.
The agreement comes a little less than two weeks before the first budget deadline that was set to elapse on January 19. This particular deadline deals with four appropriations areas that include: Agriculture, Rural Development, and the Food and Drug Administration; Energy and Water Development; Military Construction and Veterans Affairs; and Transportation, Housing and Urban Development.
The second midnight deadline, set to expire on February 2 focuses on the remaining eight appropriations areas that may lose funding if the bipartisan agreement is not reached.
Missing the first deadline would have meant payment delays to federal employees and severe disruption to many government services deemed non-essential.
In October last year, Congress secured a short-term deal to avoid a federal shutdown temporarily which was signed into a law by President Joe Biden, minutes before the deadline.
(With inputs from agencies)
