Countdown to a Potential Government Shutdown Begins
September 21, 2023
With only nine days remaining before fiscal year 2023 government funding expires, Congress has yet to identify a viable path forward to avoid a shutdown on October 1. This week, House Republicans failed on multiple attempts to advance the chamber’s fiscal year 2024 defense spending bill, as a handful of conservatives joined Democrats in defeating a rule that would have governed floor debate. Across Capitol Hill, a Senate effort to advance a three-bill spending package also failed to clear a procedural hurdle this week. While the Senate bills have enjoyed broad bipartisan support, Republican lawmakers would prefer the bills to be considered individually, rather than as a package. They have also called for an open amendment process on the floor
With progress in both chambers stalled, House Republicans recently announced a new strategy to advance a stopgap funding bill. Rather than continue spending at current levels, the latest proposal from GOP leaders would fund the government at the significantly lower $1.47 trillion level in discretionary spending – the same topline identified in the partisan Limit, Save, Grow Act of 2023 (H.R. 2811). If signed into law, it would represent a 22 percent cut for non-defense discretionary spending accounts. The proposal also includes a modified version of a GOP-sponsored immigration package – the Secure the Border Act of 2023 (H.R. 2) – that includes stricter border policies. The measure does not include any of the Biden administration’s $40 billion supplemental funding request for disaster relief or Ukraine aid.
Looking ahead, the House GOP proposal is not expected to receive any Democratic support. In fact, it may not even have enough Republican support to advance. Even if it does clear the lower chamber, the package would not be considered in the Senate.
In recent days, a bipartisan group of moderates – known as the Problem Solvers Caucus – has put forth their own stopgap spending framework. Their proposal would fund the government through January 11th and calls for all 12 annual spending bills to be passed by then. It also includes the administration’s full supplemental funding request. Finally, it would grant the administration new authority to respond to the migrant crisis at the southwest border, though it’s unclear what would be covered under these new powers. Meanwhile, Senate leaders are eyeing a Continuing Resolution (CR) that would keep the government funded into early December.
Senate Panel to Consider Cannabis Banking Legislation Next Week
On September 27, the Senate Banking Committee will consider legislation – the SAFE Banking Act – that would improve access to financial services for state-legal cannabis businesses, as well as the ancillary businesses that provide them with goods and services. The markup comes just over four months after the committee held a hearing on the bill. Specifically, the legislation would exempt depository institutions and their employees from federal prosecution or investigation solely for providing banking services to a state-legal cannabis-related business. This so-called “safe harbor” is intended to provide certainty for financial institutions to offer their products and services without fear of retribution from the federal government. It should be noted that supporters of the legislation are expected to offer several friendly amendments to the bill, including language – modeled after the HOPE Act – that would provide grant funding for states to expunge nonviolent cannabis records.