The US Senate approved a temporary budget bill on October 1, which will allow the government, which had ceased its operations, to resume work.
Modern.az reports that the bill, which will fund the government until the end of January, was approved with 60 votes in favor and 40 against.
One Republican senator opposed the bill, while eight Democratic or independent senators voted “yes.”
The document provides for funding the Department of Agriculture, the Department of Veterans Affairs, and Congress for the entire fiscal year, and other federal agencies until January 30. According to the bill, more than 4,000 federal employees who were planned to be laid off during the government shutdown will remain in their jobs.
However, the issue of extending healthcare subsidies, which was a major point of disagreement for Democrats, was not included in the bill. A vote on this matter is planned for December.
The next stage of the bill will be discussed in the House of Representatives. If approved by the House, the document will be submitted to the desk of US President Donald Trump for signature. Following Trump's signing of the bill, the federal government is expected to resume operations.
It should be recalled that the government was shut down on October 1 because Congress could not reach an agreement on funding the federal government before the start of the new fiscal year. As a result, many federal agencies ceased operations, which led to the longest government shutdown in US history.
Democratic and Republican senators reached an agreement on a temporary budget bill on the 40th day of the shutdown. The Democrats' abandonment of their demand for the continuation of healthcare subsidies removed the main obstacle to the process of reopening the government.
