US lawmakers pass spending bill to avert government shutdown

House of Representatives also votes to keep the lights on in government facilities for at least another six weeks.

The US Congress has passed a short-term spending bill to thwart a partial government shutdown that threatened the functioning of multiple key federal agencies and could have seen thousands of employees sent home without pay.

With large sections of the government due to close at the end of Friday, the House of Representatives voted 314 to 108 on Thursday to keep the lights on for at least another six weeks, approving a measure that was previously passed by a Senate vote of 77 to 18.

Complicating the negotiations, forecasts for a brutal winter storm curtailed lawmakers’ work, with Congress announcing that it would be closed all of Friday, and as public workers were preparing to be sent home unpaid, upending government functions from military operations to food aid to policymaking.

“We have good news for America: There will not be a shutdown on Friday,” Democratic Senate leader Chuck Schumer said in a speech to colleagues.

“Because both sides have worked together, the government will stay open. Services will not be disrupted. We will avoid a needless disaster.”