The House of Representatives on September 30 approved a short-term spending measure and sent it to President Joe Biden for his signature before a midnight deadline at which funding for the federal government would have expired. Only 10 Republicans voted in favor of the bill along with all Democratic members of the House. The Senate had approved the measure a day earlier, on September 29.
The House passed the Continuing Appropriations and Ukraine Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2023 (H.R. 6883) by a vote of 230 to 201, funding the U.S. government at current levels through December 16, at which time Congress aims to have agreed to an omnibus bill that sets government funding for fiscal year 2023.
“This legislation ensures no American loses access to vital services while we finish negotiations” on the broader funding discussions, said House Rules Committee Chair Jim McGovern, a Massachusetts Democrat.
The stopgap measure includes $12.3 billion in emergency economic and military aid for Ukraine, $1 billion in heating assistance for low-income families through the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program, $20 million for the water crisis in Jackson, Mississippi, billions in disaster aid, and over $112 million for federal court security.
Rep. Rosa DeLauro, the Connecticut Democrat who chairs the House Appropriations Committee, touted the vote as a win for millions of Americans.
“With the many challenges facing our nation and the world, including devastating natural disasters and the high cost of living, this bill guarantees we have the means to continue the important work we are doing to help middle-class and working families,” she said in a statement.
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