US lawmakers introduce bipartisan two-year budget deal

Washington Feb 8 (IANS) US Senate lawmakers on Wednesday introduced a bipartisan budget deal which will set government spending framework for fiscal 2018 and 2019 in order to avoid government shutdown.

The deal would lift caps on defence and nondefence spending and provide funding for disaster relief veterans infrastructure and programs addressing opioid abuse Xinhua reported.

"This bill is the product of extensive negotiations among congressional leaders and the White House " said Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell at the Senate floor on Wednesday.

"No one would suggest it is perfect but we worked hard to find common ground and remained focused on serving the American people " said McConnell.

US federal government is running on a short-term spending bill which expires on February 8. Lawmakers need to work out a spending measure before Thursday to avoid government shutdown.

The Senate intends to add the budget deal to a short-term spending measure which passed by the House on Tuesday would fund the government through March 23 in order to avoid government shutdown on Friday according to local media. It would provide more weeks for lawmakers to work out details of the budget deal.

--IANS
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