House GOP and Biden administration negotiators reached a fiscal 2024 Homeland Security spending deal Monday night, even as agencies face a potential brief appropriations lapse this weekend with time running tight.
Appropriators still need to put the finishing touches on the Homeland Security bill and report text following the White House’s last-second intervention over the weekend. Sources close to the talks aren’t ruling out a brief partial shutdown, though they are minimizing the potential effects of such a lapse given how close negotiators are to a deal and the likely short duration of any shutdown.
Lawmakers could pass a short-term stopgap bill to keep agencies operating for a few days, though sources say appropriators are not yet working on that patch. And lawmakers’ desire to start their two-week Easter recess on time — and catch the start of March Madness this weekend — could inspire quicker action.
