Congressional leaders in Washington have reached an agreement to keep the federal government funded for the next few months, averting the threat of a shutdown, a source familiar with the budget negotiations told media on Saturday.Short-term funding deal announcedThe proposal, announced on Saturday, would provide short-term funding, known as a continuing resolution (CR), to federal agencies and departments until early March.Specifically, the stopgap measure would extend current funding levels until March 1, followed by another CR until March 8.Prevents disruption ahead of funding deadlinesThe deal comes just ahead of critical funding deadlines on January 19 and February 2 that would have forced parts of the government to start shutting down operations and furloughing workers if new money had not been approved.The CR will allow lawmakers more time to finalize full-year appropriations.Congress still needs to pass spending billsWhile congressional leaders have agreed in principle to keep the government open, the House and Senate will still need to pass legislation to officially enact the short-term funding extension.The votes are expected next week as Congress races to beat the January 19 deadline.Bipartisan budget deal reached last weekThe stopgap measure follows a bipartisan budget agreement reached last weekend on overall 2024 federal spending levels.House Speaker Mike Johnson (R) and Democratic congressional leaders announced a deal that would provide $886 billion for defense programs and $773 billion in non-defense discretionary funds.Continuing resolutions to avoid shutdownsAs lawmakers often clash over spending priorities and addressing the national debt, continuing resolutions have frequently been deployed over the past decade to buy more time and prevent disruptive government shutdowns.Congress has failed to pass regular appropriations bills on time in all but four fiscal years since 1997.
