26 September 2019 Senate clears CR funding government through Nov. 21, 82-15 On September 26, the Senate passed a continuing resolution ("CR," HR 4378) to fund the government through November 21. The vote was 82-15. The House last week passed the CR by a vote of 301-123. The Senate's action clears the bill for the President's signature, and the President is expected to sign the bill before the previous funding measure expires on Monday, September 30. All of the "no" votes on the bill were from Republicans: Sens. Blackburn (TN), Cruz (TX), Daines (MT), Ernst (IA), Hawley (MO), Inhofe (OK), Lee (UT), Paul (KY), Perdue (GA), Risch (ID), Rounds (SD), Sasse (NE), Scott (FL), Scott (SC) and Toomey (PA). Before voting on HR 4378, the Senate defeated, 24-73, an amendment offered by Rand Paul (R-KY) that would have reduced the amount appropriated under the bill by 2%. The House and Senate continue to work on full-year appropriations bills to fund the government, with Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman Richard Shelby (R-AL) reportedly warning at a markup of five spending bills on September 26 that a standoff between Democrats and the White House over border funding and other issues, if not resolved, could result in Congress simply passing a full-year CR. "As we close out this month, I think, we must acknowledge the progress we have made while also recognizing that we still have a long way to go in fulfilling our duty to fund the government," Shelby said. "Most importantly for those negotiations to end in success … my Democratic colleagues and the President will have to reach an agreement, once again, on border security. If these conditions are not met, I fear we are moving headlong toward a full-year continuing resolution." Chairman Shelby is set to meet with President Trump at the White House on September 27 to discuss the "realities" of the appropriations process and how to avoid additional continuing resolutions over the next year, Politico reported. In addition to government funding, the CR includes temporary reauthorizations of the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) and the Export-Import Bank through November 21. Both are set to expire on September 30. According to a summary, the CR includes these notable "Anomalies and Technical Fixes":
The measure includes a group of so-called "health extenders" negotiated by the House Energy and Commerce and Ways and Means Committees. HR 4378 would also extend $250 million in Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative funds that are set to expire.
Document ID: 2019-1711 | |||||
