The House and Senate are both expected to take votes today on a stopgap spending plan that could prevent federal government services from going dark at midnight, according to media reports.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) was quoted by USA Today as saying the upper chamber can act quickly to try and get a continuing budget resolution, funding government operations through Dec. 3, on President Joe Biden’s desk before midnight.
Schumer wrote in a statement on Twitter that the vote is coming. Debate was scheduled to start Thursday morning after deadline for Weapons Complex Morning Briefing, according to Twitter posts by Senate Democrats and Republicans.
The chief of staff to Secretary of Energy Jennifer Granholm acknowledged in an email to Department of Energy staffers Wednesday a federal government shutdown could happen unless Congress agrees to some type of short-term spending plan before midnight.
“In the event of a lapse in appropriations, all DOE employees should continue to report to work according to your usual work schedule,” chief of staff Tarak Shah said in a “DOE Family” email viewed by Weapons Complex Morning Briefing. “Our COVID-19 maximum telework posture remains in effect.”
Shah said that “[p]rudent management requires the proper preparation for all contingencies, including the possibility that a lapse could occur,” Such developments in the past have temporarily idled the labors of most federal employees save for those whose jobs cannot be put on hold at least temporarily.
“Thank you for your hard work, dedication, and patience through this process,” Shah said.
Publicly, the DOE has declined comment on a potential shutdown, referring Weapons Complex Morning Briefing inquiries to the White House Office of Management and Budget, which did not respond.
Senate Republicans this week filibustered a stopgap spending plan that would keep the federal government running at least through Dec. 3. The last government shutdown came during the administration of President Donald Trump and ran for 34 days, from Dec. 22, 2018 until Jan. 25, 2019.
