- The Washington Times - Monday, August 31, 2020

House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer told his members Monday that Congress will likely have to use to a “continuing resolution” to avoid a government shutdown at the end of September, when the fiscal year concludes.

The Maryland Democrat blamed Senate Republicans for putting lawmakers on a tight deadline.

“In July, the Democratic-led House passed legislation to fund nearly all of the government, yet to date, the Senate has not held even a single markup of an appropriations bill,” Mr. Hoyer said in a letter. “At this rate, it is likely that we will have to pass a continuing resolution to keep government open past the end of this fiscal year.”

“While that is not ideal, the House will do its job to avert a government shutdown that would only further damage our economy,” he added.

Using these stop-gap measures to buy more time for negotiations has become increasingly common on Capitol Hill.

Both the House and Senate are out on summer breaks after lawmakers failed to work out a deal on a comprehensive coronavirus relief package.

The House is set to return September 14, but Mr. Hoyer said if a coronavirus package is ready sooner, members will have 24-hours notice before a vote in the House.

There has been talk of potentially linking a coronavirus package to government spending negotiations, but House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has said she wants to keep the two issues separate.

• Gabriella Muñoz can be reached at gmunoz@washingtontimes.com.

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