Congressional Leaders Reach Agreement To Fund Government Until March

Congress intends to vote on a stopgap funding bill next week that would fund the government through early March, according to multiple reports.

Congressional leaders agreed on a continuing resolution (CR) to prevent a government shutdown from happening on Friday, Punchbowl News reported and a source familiar confirmed to the Daily Caller News Foundation. The resolution would maintain the “laddered” two-part approach of the November CR, extending funding for four departments until March 1 and the others until March 8, according to Axios.

A spokesperson for Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer told Axios that the measure’s text would be posted online on Sunday evening. House Republicans intend to hold a conference call Sunday evening on the plan, according to Punchbowl News.

Johnson said in December that “operating by CRs and shutting down the government is a dereliction of duty.”

“I don’t think it’s the way it’s supposed to be done,” he said at a Wall Street Journal conference at the time, according to CNBC. “And what we’re going to try to do in the coming year is get us back to that process that the law requires that we won’t be in this situation again.”

A Republican representative told Axios there has been disagreements within the GOP on how long to keep the government funded.

“The ‘appropriators’ wanted more time in the hopes of appropriating more money for defense,” the Republican told the outlet, noting that others “wanted to keep the pressure on [with a] short extension.”

House Republicans and Senate Democrats already came to an agreement on spending levels for the remainder of 2024 last week, Axios reported. The CR will provide lawmakers time to draft the legislation.

The total spending number agreed to by House Speaker Mike Johnson and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer is about 20% higher than 2019, the last full year of government spending prior to the COVID-19 pandemic. Several House conservatives voiced opposition to the deal for failing to cut spending enough and ensure funding for conservative border policies.

Schumer did not immediately respond to a request for comment.