Government shutdown live updates: Biden signs bill that averts government shutdown

ByIvan Pereira, Lauren Peller, and Mary Bruce, ABC News KTRK logo
Last updated: Saturday, December 21, 2024 5:19PM GMT
Government shutdown narrowly avoided as Senate approves short-term funding bill
The legislation will extend government funding until March 14.

WASHINGTON -- With a government shutdown narrowly avoided Friday night, the House and Senate sent a funding bill to President Joe Biden's desk.

An initial bipartisan deal was tanked earlier this week by President-elect Donald Trump and his ally, Elon Musk. Then on Thursday night, the House failed to pass a revamped plan that included Trump's explosive demand that the debt limit be extended.

Under the proposal, the 118-page bill contains most of the provisions that were put in place in the bipartisan bill that was agreed to on Wednesday. The bill includes $100 billion for disaster aid, $30 billion for farmers and a one-year extension of the farm bill, provisions that were under heavy debate prior to this week's votes.

Key Headlines

Here's how the news is developing.
ByJohn Parkinson and Lauren Peller ABCNews logo
Dec 20, 2024, 10:06 PM

What's included in the new bill

The new legislation is a short-term extension that funds government through March 14, 2025.

It does not address the debt limit in the legislative text, which was a key demand from President-elect Donald Trump.

It also includes $100 billion for disaster aid; $30 billion for farmers; and a one-year extension of the farm bill.

ByMolly Nagle ABCNews logo
Dec 20, 2024, 11:08 PM GMT

Biden supports funding bill

President Joe Biden has thrown his support for the funding bill that is being voted on by the House, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said.

The president "supports moving this legislation forward and ensuring that the vital services the government provides for hardworking Americans -- from issuing Social Security checks to processing benefits for veterans -- can continue as well as to grant assistance for communities that were impacted by devastating hurricanes," she said in a statement.

Jean-Pierre added that while the bill "does not include everything we sought," it does keep the government running, get aid to those still recovering from disasters earlier this year and " eliminates the accelerated pathway to a tax cut for billionaires."

She slammed President-elect Donald Trump for causing the last-minute scramble.

"Following an order by President-elect Trump, yesterday Republicans walked away from a bipartisan deal and threatened to shut down the government at the 11th hour in order to pave the way to provide tax breaks for billionaires. This revised legislation does not do that," she said.

ABCNews logo
Dec 20, 2024, 11:02 PM GMT

House passes two-thirds threshold on bill to avert government shutdown

The House of Representatives passed the two-thirds majority to pass the funding bill to avert a federal shutdown tonight. The bill, which funds the government until March, will head to the Senate.

ByClaire Brinberg ABCNews logo
Dec 20, 2024, 11:01 PM GMT

Musk endorses funding deal

Billionaire Trump ally Elon Musk posted a statement on X that he supports the current funding deal that is being voted on.

"The Speaker did a good job here, given the circumstances. It went from a bill that weighed pounds to a bill that weighed ounces. Ball should now be in the Dem court," said Musk, who threatened GOP members two days ago.

ByJohn Parkinson ABCNews logo
Dec 20, 2024, 10:48 PM GMT

Jeffries evaluating bill, pleased debt limit provision was removed

Prior to the start of voting on the new funding bill, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries expressed approval of the removal of the debt limit provision.

"What needed to come out of the bill has come out of the bill, and now we've got to evaluate the four corners of what remains in the legislation," he said.

Pressed by ABC News' Jay O'Brien if that means Democrats should vote for it, Jeffries waffled.

"That's what we're going to discuss," the New York congressman said. "But the reckless effort to remove the ability for the American people to have a real discussion in terms of fiscal responsibility by trying to jam a debt ceiling suspension into the legislation at the eleventh hour was not sustainable."