All three of Nebraska’s U.S. House representatives voted Tuesday afternoon to approve a stopgap measure that would avoid a government shutdown. If it passes in the Senate, the bill will prevent a government shutdown on Friday and fund the federal government through Sept. 30.
The bill narrowly passed the House 217-213, relying on locked-down Republican support.
Stopgap bills, or continuing resolutions, usually keep government funding at current levels, but this one includes some changes.
Defense spending would increase $6 billion, and non-defense spending will be cut by $13 billion. Most of the cuts come from earmarks, or one-time government funds for specific projects. The bill has no new earmarks, and old ones will not get repeat funding.
District 2 Representative Don Bacon said in a statement that he voted for the continuing resolution because of the extra defense spending and to keep the government open.
“This CR does not gut any programs,” Bacon said. “In fact, it provides an additional $6 billion for the Cost of War Toxic Exposure Fund, $30.242 billion for the Veterans Benefits Administration Compensation and Pensions, $4.864 billion for the Veterans Benefits Administration Readjustment Benefits, and increases WIC by $500 million.”
Bacon said he does not like continuing resolutions, but this one was necessary to keep the government functioning.
Part of the increased defense spending funds a pay raise for junior enlisted military personnel, the largest they’ve seen in 40 years. Bacon chaired the committee that worked on the proposal.
Representative Adrian Smith from District 3 voted for the bill, saying Congress needs to get back to "the regular order."
“Yesterday, with my support, the House passed legislation to fund the federal government through the end of the current fiscal year and provide continuity for veterans’ health care and benefits, Social Security, Medicare, and other critical government services,” he said in a statement. “It’s disappointing nearly every Democrat in the House voted against preventing a harmful government shutdown. To properly address appropriations for the upcoming fiscal year, Congress needs to get back to regular order. This is the best way to have the productive debate necessary to restore fiscal responsibility and ensure good outcomes from taxpayer expenditures.”
District 1 Representative Mike Flood released a joint statement on the bill with South Dakota Representative Dusty Johnson through Main Street Caucus, a policymaking group of House Republicans.
“Today’s CR funds the government through the end of the fiscal year, ensuring that we pay our military, protect our border, and fund veterans’ services,” Flood and Johnson’s statement said. “This vote puts Congress on the path to deliver President Trump’s tax cuts and control federal spending through reconciliation.”
Flood and Johnson also urged the Senate to pass the continuing resolution.
In a call with reporters Wednesday afternoon, Sen. Pete Ricketts said he expects most Republicans will vote to approve the spending bill.
“It enables the White House to be able to continue looking for ways to identify wasteful spending, and it gives Congress time to return to [a] more regular appropriations process,” Ricketts said.
While Sen. Deb Fischer has not confirmed or denied support for the stopgap bill, her voting record indicates she will likely vote with her Republican colleagues.
Senate Democrats are attempting to balance a possible government shutdown with what they see as an imperfect spending bill. Requiring 60 votes to pass the Senate, the majority Republican body needs 7 Democrats on board with no holdouts from their own party.
“We’ll continue to monitor the situation with regard to the C.R. and what the Democrats are going to do,” Ricketts said. “If they decide they want to shut down the government, we don’t have the votes on the Senate side. We’ll need Democrat help to be able to keep the government open.”
The Senate has until Friday before the deadline to fund the government expires.
Nebraska Public Media's Kassidy Arena and Jackie Ourada contributed to this report.