The U.S. House of Representatives passed multiple spending bills, awaiting Senate votes to avoid a partial government shutdown at the end of the month

According to a report by NBC News, the U.S. House of Representatives passed a series of government spending bills involving $1.2 trillion in expenditures to support the operations of defense, health and public services, homeland security, labor, housing and urban development, transportation, and education departments. The bill concerning the Department of Homeland Security passed with a vote of 220 to 207, while the others passed with a vote of 341 to 88. These bills, along with two earlier spending bills that have already been approved by the House, must be passed by the Senate by the 30th of this month; otherwise, the relevant departments will face a shutdown.

The U.S. Senate will reconvene next week, but a winter storm over the weekend may affect lawmakers' return to Washington for the session. Although there is bipartisan consensus to avoid another government shutdown, some bills will still face challenges in the Senate. Among them, the Department of Homeland Security spending bill is opposed by Democrats, who are dissatisfied with the earlier shooting of a white woman by the Immigration and Customs Enforcement in Minnesota. Additionally, Republican members from the Midwest are demanding the inclusion of a provision allowing the sale of gasoline with ethanol in the spending terms