KENOSHA, Wis. — Congressman Bryan Steil (R–Wis.) voted Tuesday to fund the federal government and end what had become the longest shutdown in U.S. history. The move came after more than 40 days of stalled negotiations, which Steil blamed on Senate Democrats for rejecting a clean continuing resolution passed earlier by the House.

Paid Advertisement

“There was no reason our government should have shut down in the first place,” Steil said in a statement. “Weeks ago, I voted for legislation to fully fund SNAP, pay our service members, and reopen the federal government. Unfortunately, Democrats in the Senate fought for over a month to keep our government shut down, causing chaos for working families.”

Paid Advertisement

The House’s approval of H.R. 5371 — a clean continuing resolution — sends the bill to the president’s desk for signature. The same measure had passed the House back on September 19 but faced weeks of opposition in the Senate, where Democrats voted 14 times against advancing it.

Paid Advertisement

The shutdown left members of the military, federal law enforcement, and other federal employees without pay. Critical programs such as SNAP were also unfunded during the lapse in appropriations.

Paid Advertisement

Steil said he withheld his own pay during the shutdown and introduced legislation that would do the same for all members of Congress if government funding lapses. He also introduced the Eliminate Government Shutdowns Act, a measure designed to prevent future shutdowns by automatically enacting a two-week continuing resolution whenever appropriations bills aren’t passed on time.

Paid Advertisement

“Now, Congress must act to fix the broken process and pass the Eliminate Government Shutdowns Act,” Steil said. “We need to end the brinksmanship in Washington and remove the potential for future government shutdowns permanently.”

Paid Advertisement

.

Paid Advertisement

.

Paid Advertisement

.

.

.

.

.

.

.