Feb. 19 (UPI) — President Joe Biden signed a stopgap funding bill Friday to fund the government for another three weeks and avert a government shutdown.
His signature on the legislation comes one day after the Senate voted 65-27 in favor of the measure. The House gave its approval with a 272-163 vote on Feb. 8.
The bill funds the government through March 11, giving Congress until then to agree on a larger spending bill to fund the government through the end of the fiscal year in September.
Government funding was set to run out Friday before Biden signed the continuing resolution.
The Senate faced roadblocks to passing the bill, with Republicans seeking votes on three amendments that ultimately failed. Two sought to ban funding for vaccine mandates and the third would have required a balanced budget.
Democrats also struggled to have the numbers for a vote, with a number of absences making it difficult to reach a majority.
Both Sens. Dianne Feinstein and Mark Kelly were away from Congress with sick spouses, according to CNN, and Sen. Ben Ray Lujan was recovering from a stroke.
