US Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) listens to a question during a press conference on funding for the southern border at the U.S. Capitol Building on September 29, 2023 in Washington, DC. House Republicans have expressed their wish for funding for the border to be at the forefront of legislation to fund the government ahead of the government shutdown.
Just as the Senate is mourning the death of long-serving California lawmaker Sen. Dianne Feinstein, the chamber on the other side of Capitol Hill is working overtime to prevent a government shutdown, but to no avail.
The House has voted 198-232 against the stop-gap measure Friday (September 29), with 21 Republicans making good their promises to join their Democrat colleagues in rejecting the plan that would have kept the government open for 30 more days to give lawmakers time to work out a full-year deal.
The legislation would have been turned down in the Democrat-controlled Senate, which also has yet to pass a fiscal year 2024 spending plan and is expected to vote on its own short-term funding bill Saturday (September 30), which the GOP-controlled House have vowed to turn down.
Read Also: Sen. Dianne Feinstein, Longest-Serving Female US Senator, Dies Aged 90
Time Running Out Before Shutdown
The expiration of the current budget for fiscal year 2023 would be at 00:01 Sunday, Washington Time (04:01 UTC), Forbes reported.
If a legislation has not been passed before that time, hundreds of thousands of government employees would have to suspend their work and some government services are forced to pause, including food and water safety inspections, the Securities and Exchange Commission, and the National Park Service.
Meanwhile, US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen was quoted by Reuters saying that a government shutdown would "undermine" US economic progress by idling key programs for small businesses and children, as well as delaying major infrastructure improvements.
This is a developing story. Please follow HNGN for more updates.
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