The US House of Representatives voted 366-34 in favor of a package to avoid a government shutdown that does not include some of President-elect Donald Trump's demands.
The Republican-controlled U.S. House of Representatives passed legislation Friday to prevent a midnight government shutdown, defying President-elect Donald Trump's demand to also greenlight trillions of dollars in new debt.
The House voted 366-34 to approve the bill, the day after rejecting Trump's demand for a debt ceiling.
The Democratic-controlled Senate will also have to approve the bill to send it to President Joe Biden, who the White House said would sign it into law to ensure the U.S. government receives funding beyond midnight Saturday, when it expires. current financing.
The legislation extends government funding through March 14, providing $100 billion to disaster-affected states and $10 billion to farmers. However, it does not raise the debt ceiling, a difficult task that Trump has pressed Congress to do before taking office on January 20.
A government shutdown would affect everything from law enforcement to national parks and suspend the salaries of millions of federal employees.
A travel industry trade group warned it could cost airlines, hotels and other businesses $1 billion a week and cause widespread disruptions during the busy holiday season. Authorities warned that travelers could face long lines at airports.
The approved package resembles a bipartisan plan that was abandoned earlier this week after a barrage of online criticism from Trump and his billionaire adviser Elon Musk, who said it contained too many unrelated provisions.
Most of those elements were removed from the bill, including a provision limiting investments in China that Democrats said would conflict with Musk's interests there.
“He clearly doesn't want to answer questions about how much he plans to expand his business in China and how much American technology he plans to sell,” said Democratic Rep. Rosa DeLauro in the House of Representatives.
Trump has tasked Musk, the world's richest person, with leading a task force to cut the budget, but he holds no official position in Washington.
The bill also excluded Trump's lawsuit over the country's debt ceiling, which was roundly rejected by the House, including 38 Republicans, on Thursday.
Rep. Steve Scalise, the No. 2 Republican in the House, said lawmakers had been in contact with Trump but did not say whether the president-elect supported the new plan.
According to some sources, the White House has alerted government agencies to prepare for an imminent shutdown. The last time the federal government shut down for 35 days was during Trump's first term in the White House due to a dispute over border security.
Previous disputes over the debt ceiling have spooked financial markets, as a US government default would trigger credit shocks around the world.
The cap has been suspended under an agreement that technically expires Jan. 1, although lawmakers likely would not have had to address the issue before the spring.