WASHINGTON — Congress sent President Barack Obama a short-term spending bill to keep the government open through next Wednesday as lawmakers and the White House rushed to finalize a $1.1 trillion government-wide spending bill and a sprawling tax package.
The measure was approved by voice vote Friday hours ahead of a midnight deadline. The bill will give Congress and the administration more time to complete negotiations.
“I believe we’re making good progress on a final-year package,” said Rep. Hal Rogers, R-Ky., chairman of the House Appropriations Committee.
Dozens of issues remain unresolved, most of them policy disputes over environmental and other issues that lawmakers of both parties are trying to attach to the must-pass spending legislation. Republicans are seeking to lift the oil export ban and roll back various Obama administration regulations; Democrats are maneuvering to protect Obama’s environmental rules and enact permanent tax credits for wind, solar and other renewable energy.
“We’re not going to get everything we want in negotiations. The Democrats aren’t going to get everything they want in negotiations,” House Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Wis., told reporters Thursday. “But I believe that we will successfully complete these negotiations.”
Under current law, government funding expires Friday at midnight, when the last short-term spending bill expires. The Senate agreed by voice vote and without debate Thursday to extend that deadline through Wednesday Dec. 16 to allow more time for talks. The House was expected to follow suit Friday, but Ryan allowed that even more time might be needed.
“I’m not going to put a deadline on it,” he said. “I want to make sure that these negotiations are done well and done right, and not by some arbitrary deadline.”
Earlier, Ryan assured lawmakers from Northeastern states that legislation extending health benefits and a compensation fund for 9/11 first responders would be made part of the spending bill. The spending legislation, which funds the government through the 2016 budget year, has become increasingly intertwined with the tax bill, which could deliver a political victory for both sides.
Uncertainty remained as to whether lawmakers would pull off a major tax bill with permanent extensions benefiting both sides, or simply opt for a two-year extension of existing tax breaks. With Congress’ legislative year drawing to a close, lawmakers were eager to finalize their work and head home for the holidays.
