US Congress averts a shutdown that would disrupt many government functions

The US Congress has approved a short-term spending bill to fund federal operations through 17 November, averting a government shutdown that would have disrupted many government functions. The House of Representatives passed a continuing resolution to keep the federal government funded at existing levels, while the Senate followed suit, voting 88-9 in favor just hours before funding was about to expire and hundreds of thousands of federal employees were to be furloughed. President Joe Biden called the bill "good news for the American people."

House speaker Kevin McCarthy joined with Democrats to push the legislation through, bypassing far-right members who had refused to back any short-term funding deal. The bill needed a two-thirds vote for passage, with House Democrats providing 209 of the 335 votes in favor of the measure, with only one Democrat voting against it. The clean continuing resolution does not include $6bn in supplemental emergency aid to Ukraine, but it will extend the authorization of the US Federal Aviation Administration for three months and avoid potential disruptions in its programs.