Another impasse forces Congress to pass stopgap spending bill

WASHINGTON -- Congress last week voted for a compromise that averted the latest threat of a government shutdown.

The House and Senate took voice votes to keep agencies funded through Tuesday . On that day, the House is scheduled to vote on a bill to fund the government through Nov. 18.

The Senate voted on both measures before leaving for a weeklong recess. During the recess, the House convened an abbreviated session with a handful of members present to finalize the stopgap bill.

The two-step legislation was made necessary by the latest impasse between Democrats and Republicans over spending. The parties had deadlocked over additional disaster relief funding the Federal Emergency Management Agency said it needed before Friday , the end of the fiscal year.

The standoff ended when FEMA officials ultimately told Congress they could stretch the agency's budget into October, when new fiscal year funds would become available.

The Senate then passed, by voice, the mini-extension to keep the government running until Tuesday . In a roll call, it passed a bill to keep agencies open until Nov. 18 at levels set in a July agreement that extended the debt ceiling. The measure gives lawmakers more time to put together a large-scale appropriations bill to cover the remainder of the fiscal year.

The Senate vote was 79-12. Opposition came from Republicans who said the spending level was too high.

Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev., voted for the bill. Sen. Dean Heller, R-Nev., voted against it.

Contact Stephens Washington Bureau
Chief Steve Tetreault at stetreault
@stephensmedia.com or 202-783-1760.