President Donald Trump signed a government funding bill Wednesday night, ending a 43-day shutdown — the longest in U.S. history.
The signing ceremony came just hours after the House passed the measure on a mostly party-line vote of 222-209. The Senate had already passed the measure Monday.
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What’s in the bill to end the shutdown?
The legislation is the result of a deal reached by eight senators who broke ranks with the Democrats after reaching the conclusion that Republicans would not budge on using a government funding bill to extend the health care tax credits.
The compromise funds three annual spending bills and extends the rest of government funding through Jan. 30. Republicans promised to hold a vote by mid-December to extend the health care subsidies, but there is no guarantee of success.
How it affects federal employees
The bill includes a reversal of the firing of federal workers by the Trump administration since the shutdown began.
It also protects federal workers against further layoffs through January and guarantees they are paid once the shutdown is over.
The bill for the Agriculture Department means people who rely on key food assistance programs will see those benefits funded without threat of interruption through the rest of the budget year.
Security of lawmakers and SCOTUS justices
The package includes $203.5 million to boost security for lawmakers and an additional $28 million for the security of Supreme Court justices.
Democrats also decried language in the bill that would give senators the opportunity to sue when a federal agency or employee searches their electronic records without notifying them, allowing for up to $500,000 in potential damages for each violation.
The language seems aimed at helping Republican senators pursue damages if their phone records were analyzed by the FBI as part of an investigation into Trump’s efforts to overturn his 2020 election loss. The provisions drew criticism from Republicans as well. House Speaker Mike Johnson said he was “very angry about it.”
“That was dropped in at the last minute, and I did not appreciate that, nor did most of the House members,” Johnson said, promising a vote on the matter as early as next week.
How it affects Affordable Care Act premium tax credits
The biggest point of contention was the fate of the expiring enhanced tax credit that makes health insurance more affordable through Affordable Care Act marketplaces.
The tax credit was boosted during the COVID-19 pandemic response, again through President Joe Biden’s big energy and health care bill, and it’s set to expire at the end of December. Without it, premiums on average will more than double for millions of Americans. More than 2 million people would lose health insurance coverage altogether next year, the Congressional Budget Office projected.
“It’s a subsidy on top of a subsidy. Our friends added it during COVID,” said Rep. Tom Cole, the Republican chairman of the House Appropriations Committee. “COVID is over. They set a date certain that the subsidies would run out. They chose the date.”
Rep. Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., said the enhanced tax credit was designed to give more people access to health care, and no Republican voted for it.
“All they have done is try to eliminate access to health care in our country. The country is catching on to them,” Pelosi said.
Democrats had refused to go along with a short-term spending bill that did not include that priority, but Republicans said that was a separate policy fight to be held at another time.
It’s unclear whether the parties will find any common ground on health care before the December vote in the Senate. House Speaker Mike Johnson has said he will not commit to bringing it up in his chamber.