Copyright NBC 5 Chicago
The longest government shutdown in United States history could soon end, but it will require the House of Representatives to pass a funding bill. The House has been out of session for weeks, with Speaker Mike Johnson insisting that there was no need for legislators to negotiate as the Senate held numerous unsuccessful votes on a measure passed by the lower chamber earlier this year. Now, the House is set to go back into session, and lawmakers will be asked whether to pass a bill that will keep the government funded through the end of January. Here’s what to know. Why has the funding bill been so controversial? Senate Democrats had pushed back against reaching the 60-vote threshold for the funding bill since it didn’t contain extensions for subsidies enacted under the Affordable Care Act. Democrats had warned that failing to extend the subsidies would cause healthcare premiums to skyrocket for millions of Americans. Chicago Politics Republicans had resisted extending those subsidies, though there have been some noteworthy GOP House and Senate members who have expressed concerns about the expiration of those funds, including Rep. Marjorie Taylor-Greene. Eight Senate Democrats ultimately voted for the funding bill without the subsidies included, including Illinois Sen. Dick Durbin, and in exchange they received pledges from Senate Republicans that a vote would take place on the subsidies in December. House Republicans, including Speaker Mike Johnson, have not yet confirmed that they will hold a similar vote in the chamber, putting the future of those subsidies in doubt. When will the actual vote take place? Before the vote the funding bill can take place, the House has to conduct several other pieces of business. The first will be the swearing-in of Arizona Rep.-elect Adelita Grijalva, who was triumphant in a special election earlier this year. Johnson has declined to swear her in previously, sparking intense controversy and even a lawsuit from the state of Arizona. After she is sworn in, the House will conduct an hour of debate on rules for proceeding with the funding bill passed by the Senate. An initial vote will then be held on those rules. Following that vote, assuming it’s successful, there will be an hour of debate on the funding bill itself. Per House rules, speeches made by party leadership on both sides do not count toward that hour, so the speeches could last beyond that timeframe. As of right now, the final vote on the measure is expected to take place at approximately 6:15 p.m. Central time, but it could occur later depending on how long debate lasts. What will the measure do? If the funding bill passes, the continuing resolution will fund most of the federal government through the end of January, with programs pertaining to military construction, veterans’ affairs and agriculture all being funded through September, according to the Associated Press. Furloughed workers at government agencies, including air traffic controllers, will also be allowed to return to work, and those workers who were working without pay during the shutdown will receive back pay. Finally, the measure will restore full payment of SNAP benefits for tens of millions of Americans, which has been the subject of scrutiny and legal challenges as the Trump administration has pushed against paying out full benefits during the shutdown. What has to happen if the measure is passed? President Donald Trump would still have to sign the legislation, which he appears poised to do. Once his signature is affixed to the bill, the shutdown will officially be over, and agencies will begin to ramp back up to full readiness, according to federal officials.
