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The House released a short-term government funding bill and plans to vote on it Feb. 8 to stave off a federal shutdown after Feb. 18.

The Democratic-controlled House passed a bill that would suspend the U.S. debt ceiling into December 2022 and provide the government funding to operate past Sept. 30. Republicans have vowed to block it when it reaches the Senate over the debt limit provision.

President Donald Trump signed a bill containing $900 billion in pandemic relief, backing down from last-minute demands that undercut his own negotiating team, risked a government shutdown and delayed widely supported economic aid as coronavirus cases continue to rise.

Congressional leaders have until March 23 to finalize a fiscal 2018 funding bill, as part of a deal Senate leaders recently struck that also would provide $90 billion for hurricane disaster relief and $20 billion for infrastructure projects.

Amid recent failed attempts by party leaders to negotiate funding parameters for fiscal 2018, Congress will opt for a short-term measure designed to avoid a government shutdown, House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) said Nov. 30.

Oregon’s most ambitious highway upgrades in a generation won final approval from the Legislature on July 6.