US lawmakers reach deal on USD 1.1 trillion spending bill

Washington: US congressional negotiators finalised a huge spending bill that funds most federal operations through next September, concluding weeks of haggling to avoid a looming government shutdown.

“This bill will allow us to fulfil our constitutional duty to responsibly fund the federal government and avoid a shutdown,” Republican House Appropriations chairman Hal Rogers said after the marathon haggling concluded.

But it sets up a showdown next February over President Barack Obama’s immigration policy.

DHS will implement most of the executive order on immigration, and Republicans want to revisit its funding levels when Congress meets next year under full Republican control.

The bill contains USD 1.014 trillion in discretionary domestic spending, plus USD 64 billion in military overseas contingency operations in places like Iraq and Afghanistan.

It provides for counter terrorism cooperation with countries like Yemen, Libya and Somalia, funds USD 5 billion for operations to counter the Islamic State extremist group, including USD 1.6 billion to train Iraqi and Kurdish security forces, and re-authorizes a Pentagon program for up to USD 500 million to train and equip vetted Syrian opposition members.

It also provides USD 5.4 billion in emergency funding to respond to the Ebola crisis — slightly less than the USD 6 billion requested by Obama.

It earmarks USD 175 million for Israel’s Iron Dome missile defense shield, part of a USD 347 million request by Israel for missile defense programmes.

Leadership aides acknowledged the House will have to pass a short-term funding extension to keep the lights on beyond the shutdown deadline, as the Senate might need an extra day or two to debate and vote on the bill.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said lawmakers should seek to avoid the “cliffhanger fights” that have come to mark several recent spending measures.