After midnight Saturday, a partial government shutdown would have occurred if the Senate had not passed a funding bill to fund the government through March 11.
It was a 65-27 vote, including several Republicans. 60 votes were needed in the Senate to pass the bill, which passed the House last week.
With the bill being passed, all that remains is for it to be forwarded to President Biden for his signature.
According to CBSNews, GOP lawmakers who voted against the continuing resolution cited high government spending and inflation levels as reasons for opposing the measure, and three GOP amendments failed.
To fund the government through September, lawmakers are still working on an omnibus appropriations bill.
“I am pleased that Congress has passed a continuing resolution through March 11, ensuring that the government will remain open as we continue our bipartisan, bicameral negotiations on FY22 bills,” Republican Richard Shelby, vice chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee, said.
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“We are making progress under our omnibus framework, but there’s still a lot of work to be done. This will provide us additional time to complete our work. Chairman Leahy, Chair DeLauro, Ranking Member Granger, and I remain steadfast in our commitment to get the job done and fund the government through the end of this fiscal year.”
According to Mr. Biden’s State of the Union address on March 1, as a result of the short-term funding measure, the government will remain funded at current levels to prevent a partial government shutdown.
In the meantime, the Biden administration is trying to gauge congressional support for an additional $30 billion in federal funding to combat COVID-19, with a particular focus on testing, treatments, and vaccine development to combat the virus and future diseases, according to CBS News.
