The $460 billion so-called “minibus” averts a partial government shutdown.
The House of Representatives passed a more than one-thousand-page, $460 billion package to fund the federal government, averting the March 8 deadline that would have resulted in a partial government shutdown. The package contains six appropriations bills and $13 billion in earmarks. The legislation covers departments such as the USDA, FDA, VA, HUD, Justice, Energy, Interior, and Transportation. Six other appropriations bills remain outstanding for negotiations before March 22.
House Appropriations Committee chair, Kay Granger of Texas said, “Members submitted over one thousand amendments. We considered house bills individually on the floor, and we avoided a massive omnibus measure.” She added, “We increased defense funding and made targeted cuts. We also maintained legacy riders that my colleagues on the other side of the aisle wanted to remove.”
House Speaker Mike Johnson of Louisiana said the legislation “secured key conservative policy victories, rejected left-wing proposals, and imposed sharp cuts to agencies and programs.” He continued, “This legislation forbids the Department of Justice from targeting parents exercising their right to free speech before school boards, while it blocks the Biden Administration from stripping Second Amendment rights from veterans.“
Speaker Johnson also highlighted the full funding of veterans’ healthcare while imposing cuts to the EPA, ATF, and FBI. The Senate will likely approve the package, and President Biden is expected to sign it.
As the Lord Leads, Pray with Us…
- For members of the Senate as they consider the package of six appropriations bills.
- For the president and his advisors as he prepares to sign the legislation to keep the government fully functioning.
Sources: DailyWire, GovExec
