House Republican leaders are poised to waive a key voting rule that requires lawmakers to release legislative text at least 72 hours before a vote as Congress races to avoid a weekend government shutdown.
The House is likely to vote on its final spending bill on Friday, just one day after lawmakers unveiled the “minibus” compiling the final six appropriations bills for fiscal 2024. It’s not clear what time the House will vote on the package, but it’s likely to be sometime in the morning, skirting the 72-hour rule put in place by Republicans when they took control of the lower chamber last year.
Spokespeople for House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) confirmed they were likely to waive the voting rule, noting it was crucial to get the must-pass spending legislation through both chambers of Congress before federal funding is set to lapse at midnight on Friday.
“House Republicans support giving members 72 hours in principle, even when it’s not required, and we’ve worked around the clock to give members as much time as possible,” a spokesperson told the Washington Examiner. “Unfortunately, since the White House neglected to engage in serious negotiations on a full-year DHS bill until the eleventh hour, Congress has no choice but to act swiftly to avoid a lapse in government funding.”
The Washington Examiner reached out to the White House for comment.
Appropriators posted the text of the $1.2 trillion spending bill shortly before 3 a.m. Eastern time on Thursday. If the House votes on the bill on Friday morning, it would mean lawmakers have over 24 hours to read through the 1,012-page bill, which several Republicans have already decried.
“It’s being put up on suspension of the rules, which, by the way, is a travesty,” Rep. Chip Roy (R-TX) said on Steve Bannon’s War Room on Thursday. “It’s being put up with less than 24 hours to read it, which is a travesty.”
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The final spending package combines six appropriations bills and covers roughly 70% of the federal government. That funding covers the Pentagon, State Department, Labor Department, Health and Human Services Department, Department of Homeland Security, and foreign operations.
If lawmakers can’t get the bill through the House and Senate and then to President Joe Biden’s desk before midnight on Friday, the government is set to enter a partial shutdown.