CHARLESTON, W.Va. — The U.S. House of Representatives passed a continuing resolution on Thursday that would temporarily keep the federal government open while avoiding a government shutdown at the end of the month.
The House voted 301-123 on the continuing resolution; 76 Republicans — including West Virginia’s David McKinley and Carol Miller — voted for the measure along with 223 Democratic legislators. Rep. Alex Mooney, R-W.Va., opposed the resolution.
The federal government is set to shut down at the end of the month if a funding agreement is not approved. The continuing resolution provides funding for various agencies through Nov. 21.
The Senate will have to approve the resolution before it reaches President Donald Trump for his decision.
The Senate’s Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations published a report this week which found government shutdowns over the past five years cost taxpayers around $4 billion. Most of the money — $3.7 billion — was back pay to federal workers. The report also noted an estimated 56,983 years of productivity was lost during the three shutdowns.
Trump and Congress reached a deal in January to end the most recent shutdown. The 35-day partial shutdown began after the president and Democratic lawmakers were unable to reach a deal on immigration and border security.
Trump later declared a national emergency to get funding for a wall on the U.S.-Mexico border.