WASHINGTON, D.C. – As the year is coming to an end, Congress faces important funding deadlines. Congressional members only have a few more days to figure this out before a government shutdown could happen right before the holidays.
This includes money for programs at the federal level, like air traffic control, national parks, environmental programs, medical research and more. Congressional members are struggling to reach a deal on a massive government funding package. Some are cautioning that they might need to pass another short-term measure to avert a shutdown at the end of the week, essentially kicking the can down the road which would force the next Congress to deal with it. The Senate appropriations chair, Sen. Pat Leahy (D- VT) warned on Thursday that passing another short-term bill will keep the government funding at last year’s levels with no adjustments for inflation. Adding there will be real life consequences if they can’t move forward with a massive omnibus package. According to some think tanks, passing another short-term measure means federal agencies cannot implement new policies or programs until congress enacts the regular appropriations bills.
The House has moved forward a mega-defense spending bill which the Senate is slated to take up this week. That of course, is just another major funding priority congress needs to finalize.
