Washington D.C., Feb 12, 2019 / 11:30 am
Congressional leaders hope to have avoided a further partial government shutdown after reaching an agreement on a budget that includes over a billion dollars in funding for new barriers along the United States' border with Mexico.
The deal, announced February 11, comes ahead of a looming Friday deadline to reach an agreement on the budget or else face a further round of partial federal shutdowns. The deal still has to be approved by President Donald Trump, who has previously requested about $5.7 billion to fund the construction of a wall along parts of the southern border.
Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman Sen. Richard Shelby (R-AL) said that he expects the president to approve of the compromise. The final text has yet to be released, but could come as soon as Wednesday.
The compromise agreement reportedly provides $1.3 billion in funding for border barrier construction along 55 miles of the Rio Grande Valley. The deal is also set to include a gradual reduction of the number of beds used to detain undocumented immigrants in areas not located near the U.S. border, something pushed by Congressional Democrats throughout budget negotiations.