WASHINGTON ― Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) announced Friday that the Senate would quickly fix one of the harshest provisions of a government funding bill he has reluctantly supported.
The legislation, which would avert a government shutdown at midnight Friday, included a provision forcing the D.C. government to cut $1 billion from its budget over the next six months, potentially causing mass layoffs of teachers and firefights.
Schumer said that as soon as the Senate passes the funding bill, it would move a bill to undo the D.C. cut. Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) said earlier that such a fix was in the works.
“This legislation will make sure that we take care of the residents of the District,” Schumer said. “It will support law enforcement and firefighters and teachers and city services. The legislation is very good news for the residents of the District of Columbia.”
Schumer’s office did not immediately provide details about the legislation.
The D.C. fix would still need to be approved by the House, however, and that chamber is not scheduled to return to Washington for votes until March 24. It’s not clear if House Republicans would embrace the measure, but no lawmaker has exactly championed the cut to the District’s budget, and some observers have suggested it was put in by mistake.
“I don’t know what they saw,” Sen. Markwayne Mullin (R-Okla.), a former House member, told HuffPost on Friday. He seemed a bit befuddled by the provision, even as he expressed skepticism that the city spent its money wisely.
A bipartisan bill shielding D.C. from a pointless cut ― which wouldn’t save the federal government any money ― would be something of a win for Schumer, who has been battered by members of his own party for saying Democrats would filibuster the broader funding bill on Wednesday and then saying he himself would support it on Thursday.
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“I’m happy we’re passing the bill today. I thank my colleagues for working quickly to bring this bill to the floor,” Schumer said. “Once the Senate acts, we urge the house to act quickly.”
A spokesperson for House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) did not immediately respond to a request for comment.