US govt shutdown: House passes short-term spending bill, fate uncertain

The US House of Representatives passed a short-term spending bill to avoid a government shutdown, but whether the bill could pass the Senate remained uncertain.

In a vote of 230-197, the House approved the stopgap spending bill which would fund the government through February 16, Xinhua reported.

It also reauthorised the Children's Health Insurance Program for six years for low-income families and delays implementation of three taxes imposed by the Affordable Care Act which was introduced during the Obama administration.

The federal government is running on its third temporary spending bill since fiscal year 2018 which began on October 1, last year. The current funding measure expires on Friday.

Now the bill will go to the Senate for approval, where the Democrat lawmakers said they would block the measure.

The Congress is discussing immigration reform legislation and a long-term budget deal which will set a spending framework for fiscal year 2018 and 2019. However, Republican and Democrat lawmakers are far away from any agreement.

Democrats are demanding a budget deal should include protections for young immigrants known as "Dreamers" brought to US as children, yet Republicans who control both chambers of the Congress have shown no signs of including a "Dreamers" protection in the bill.

The last government shutdown occurred in 2013 after Republican lawmakers refused to support a spending bill that included funds for the Affordable Care Act, known as Obamacare.