President Biden Signs $1.2 Trillion Funding Bill as Senate Averts Government Shutdown

On Saturday, President Joe Biden signed a $1.2 trillion package of spending bills following the passage of the long-awaited legislation by Congress just hours earlier, thereby averting the looming threat of a partial government shutdown.

In a statement, Biden remarked,

“This agreement represents a compromise, which means neither side got everything it wanted. But it rejects extreme cuts from House Republicans and expands access to child care, invests in cancer research, funds mental health and substance use care, advances American leadership abroad, and provides resources to secure the border. … That’s good news for the American people.”

Lawmakers took six months into the current budget year to reach this point in government funding, with the process impeded by conservatives advocating for more policy mandates and deeper spending cuts than what a Democratic-led Senate or White House would support. The deadlock necessitated several short-term spending bills to sustain agency funding.