Jan. 14 (UPI) — The U.S. House is set to vote on a funding bill on Wednesday in hopes of avoiding another government shutdown as the end-of-month deadline draws near.
The House is mulling a two-bill package that would fund the State Department, Treasury and IRS and Federal Trade Commission through September. If passed, it would still need to pass more appropriations bills to insure the entirety of the government is funded by the end of the fiscal year ending in September.
Congress must pass a continuing resolution to fund the government by Jan. 30 to avoid a government shutdown.
The bill package passed through a procedural vote on Wednesday with support from most of the Republican majority in the House, advancing 213-210. That vote sets the bill up for further consideration with the addition of two amendments pushed by conservatives in Congress.
The amendments proposed by Republicans would cut funding to the District of Columbia by 20%, eliminate the salaries of two judges and cut funding for the National Endowment for Democracy.
House Speaker Mike Johnson insists that his party is unified on passing the appropriations package. Fissures within the Republican party contributed partly to the record 43-day government shutdown that began on Oct. 1.
“We’re totally in control of the House,” Johnson said on Tuesday.
Five Republicans did not register votes in Wednesday’s procedural vote. A handful of Republican congresspeople are not on Capitol Hill this week for various reasons, leaving Johnson and his party only one vote to spare.