Government funding needs to be approved by this Saturday (September 30) for federal agencies to continue operating
Republican deputies rejected on Friday (September 29, 2023) a bill proposed by the party itself to finance the United States government for 30 days. As a result, the closure of federal agencies is imminent and could take place as early as Sunday (October 1, 2023).
“It’s not the end; I have other ideas”, said the president of the US House and supporter of the project, Republican Kevin McCarthy, after the vote.
There were 232 votes against the proposal and 198 in favor. The text establishes spending cuts and restrictions on immigration. Despite the Republican Party being in favor of these agendas, the assessment was that the measures would not be approved by the Senate, which has a Democratic majority. Here’s the full project (PDF – 165 kB).
As shutdown (closure, in English), federal government employees will be placed on leave and instructed not to report to work. Employees in essential sectors, such as security, continue to work, but are not paid.
The project must be approved by Congress and sanctioned by President Joe Biden this Saturday (September 30) for federal agencies to continue operating.
Biden warned of possible impacts on the Armed Forces. “We cannot play politics while our troops are in question. It’s an absolute dereliction of duty”, declared the North American president on Friday (September 29).
“Shutdown”
In 1884, the US government enacted the Anti-Deficiency Act – which prohibits federal agencies from spending more than allowed without Congressional approval.
Therefore, annually, the Legislature has to approve 12 appropriations laws to finance all public spending. If this is not done, sectors that have not had their expenses approved will come to a standstill – the shutdown.
Since 1976, when the US changed the start of the fiscal year to October 1, the government has shut down 21 times. Among these, the most relevant were in 1995, 2013 and 2018.
The last strike occurred during the government of former President Donald Trump and was the longest until then: it lasted 34 days. Read more in this report.
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