What’s in the funding bill proposed by Mike Johnson to avert the government shutdown?

The US government is contending with another federal government shutdown. The deadline for the latest instalment of intra-Republican bickering is 19 November; if no bill to extend federal government funding by that date has passed then there will be a partial shutdown, the first since 2019 which cost an estimated $11 billion.

The new Speaker of the House, Republican Rep. Mike Johnson, revealed his plan to fund the government on Saturday. His measures, known as a ‘continuing resolution,’ would fund some parts of the government until 19 January and other until 2 February next year.

“This two-step continuing resolution is a necessary bill to place House Republicans in the best position to fight for conservative victories,” Johnson said in a statement after speaking with GOP lawmakers. “The bill will stop the absurd holiday-season omnibus tradition of massive, loaded up spending bills introduced right before the Christmas recess.”

Followers of United States’ politics can be forgiven for becoming exhausted by the continuous rigmarole around the funding for the US government. It seems that every few months, and as recently as September, Congress plays games with the US economy by veering towards a federal government shutdown by refusing to come to a spending agreement. These ‘continuous resoultions’ look to be the only motions that House Republicans can agree on. Long-term thinking is absent.

The House is expecting to vote on the measures on Tuesday.

What has Speaker Johnson included in the bill?

The main aspect of the bill are the two respective funding plans. In an unusual move, different parts of federal spending has been divided with two seperate deadlines.

The first, 19 January, would include funding for: military construction, veterans benefits, transportation, housing, urban development, agriculture, the Food and Drug Administration and energy and water.

Funding for all other federal operations, including the military, the Department of State, and the Department of Homeland Security would expire on 2 February.

There is no additional funding for Israel, Ukraine, or Taiwan. These are set to have their own bills in future.