The Democratic-controlled Senate in an 85-11 vote passed the bill to continue government funding 38 minutes after it expired at midnight (0500 GMT Saturday).
The bill will now be sent it to White House, where President Joe Biden is expected to sign it into law.
The late-night vote capped a frantic week that saw President-elect Donald Trump and his billionaire ally Elon Musk defeat an initial bipartisan deal, throwing Congress into disarray.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) gives a thumbs up walking out of the Senate Chamber after speaking on the floor of the Senate at the U.S. Capitol on December 20, 2024 in Washington, DC. The House approved a stopgap funding bill Friday to avert a government shutdown, extending funding into mid-March and including disaster relief, but omitting a debt ceiling suspension sought by President-elect Donald J. Trump after Republican opposition. (Photo: Kent Nishimura/Getty ImagesCongress did not act on Trump’s demand to raise the debt ceiling, a politically difficult task, before he takes office on January 20.
The legislation would extend government funding until March 14, provide $100 billion for disaster-hit states and $10 billion for farmers, and extend farm and food aid programs due to expire at the end of the year.
House Speaker Mike Johnson said the party will have more influence next year, when they will have majorities in both chambers of Congress and Trump will be in the White House.
He said Trump supported the package.
A travel industry trade group warned it could cost airlines, hotels and other companies $1 billion per week and lead to widespread disruptions during the busy Christmas season.
The package resembled a bipartisan plan that was abandoned earlier this week after an online fusillade from Trump and Musk, who said it contained too many unrelated provisions, such as a pay raise for lawmakers and a crackdown on pharmacy benefit managers.
Elon Musk has emerged as a powerful player in Washington after supporting the Trump presidential campaign (Photo: David Swanson/Reuters)
“He clearly does not want to answer questions about how much he plans to expand his businesses in China and how many American technologies he plans to sell,” Democratic Representative Rosa DeLauro said on the House floor.
Musk wrote on his social media platform X that he was happy with the package.
House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries said his party still achieved some of its goals and prevented Republicans from enacting a debt-ceiling hike that would make it easier to cut taxes.
Trump’s demand to lift the debt ceiling was resoundingly rejected by the House – including 38 Republicans – on Thursday.
Representative Rich McCormick, one of 34 Republicans who voted against the Friday bill, said it did nothing to change the nation’s fiscal trajectory and would only add to the debt load.
The federal government last shut down for 35 days during Trump’s first White House term over a dispute about border security.
The limit has been suspended under an agreement that technically expires on Jan. 1, though lawmakers likely would not have had to tackle the issue before the spring.
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