Second Stopgap Funding Bill Keeps Lights On

Congress has passed and the President has signed a second stopgap funding bill in the form of a continuing resolution to keep the government funded until December 20, 2019 at fiscal year (FY) 2019 levels. The first continuing resolution passed by Congress before the current fiscal year began on October 1, 2019 funded the government until November 21, 2019. The U.S. House of Representatives voted 231-192 on November 19 to pass another short-term measure that extends funding until the end of the year. The Senate followed on November 21, approving the measure with a 74-20 vote. Lawmakers now have another month to complete their work on FY 2020 appropriations. “Failing to secure funding for the federal government before the end of the year is not an option,” said Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY). Negotiations between the chambers have been stalled due to partisan disagreements over funding for the U.S.-Mexico border wall and top-line allocations for the 12 Appropriations Subcommittees. So far, the House has passed ten and the Senate has passed four of the twelve appropriations bills. Both chambers have approved funding increases for the National Science Foundation but by different amounts.      
Source: Public Policy Reports - Category: Biology Authors: Source Type: news