WASHINGTON (AP) — House Republicans unveiled legislation Friday to avert a partial government shutdown at the end of the month and fund the government until the end of March, when the new president and Congress make final decisions on agency spending and fiscal priorities. the year 2025.
Republicans also add a hot-button immigration issue to the measure by requiring states to provide proof of citizenship, such as a birth certificate or passport, when someone registers to vote. The inclusion of the citizenship requirement is not an initiative in the Senate, which complicates the chances of passing the spending bill.
Lawmakers return to Washington next week after the traditional August break, spent mostly in their home states and districts. They’re far from finalizing a dozen annual appropriations bills that will fund agencies through the next fiscal year, so they must pass an interim measure to prevent a shutdown when the new fiscal year begins Oct. 1.
“Today, House Republicans are taking an extremely important step to keep the federal government funded and secure our federal election process,” Speaker Mike Johnson said in a statement. “Congress has a duty to do both, and we must ensure that only American citizens can decide American elections.”
But in a joint statement, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and Appropriations Committee Chairwoman Patty Murray said avoiding a shutdown requires bipartisanship, not legislation by one party.
“If Speaker Johnson pushes House Republicans down this highly partisan path, the likelihood of a shutdown will increase significantly, and the American people will know that the responsibility for the shutdown rests with House Republicans,” Schumer and Murray said.
Johnson’s decision to add a citizenship requirement to the spending measure came after the House Freedom Caucus called for it in a statement last month. A group of conservatives betting on Republican nominee Donald Trump’s victory also called for the measure to fund the government early next year so Republicans could get more of their legislative priorities.
Some Republican leaders had wanted to pass final spending bills by the end of this Congress so that a new president, whether Trump or Democratic nominee Kamala Harris, could focus more on staffing and pursuing his own top priorities rather than spending. disagreements.
Republicans say requiring proof of citizenship would ensure that U.S. elections are only for U.S. citizens, thereby increasing confidence in the country’s federal election system. But opponents say available evidence shows noncitizens voting in federal elections is incredibly rare, and such a requirement would disenfranchise millions of Americans who don’t have the necessary documents readily available when they get a chance to register.
It remains to be seen what will happen if the bill passes the House this week and the Senate refuses to pass it or votes against it.
The bill would fund the agencies at current levels through March 28, but also has money to cover additional security costs related to Inauguration Day and $10 billion for the federal emergency fund.
