Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-Kentucky) serves as the majority leader in the Senate. Photo from Facebook

The Senate voted 77 to 19 on Monday to advance debate on a bill that averts a shutdown of the federal government.

The bill, H.R.719, includes a continuing resolution to fund the government through December 11. Consideration resumes today, according to the Democratic schedule, and final action is needed in both the Senate and the House by Wednesday night in order to prevent a shutdown.

The continuing resolution maintains funding at basically the same levels as the last fiscal year. That means the Bureau of Indian Affairs and the Indian Health Service won't be seeing any increases from either the budget proposed by President Barack Obama earlier this year or the appropriations bills that were under review in the House this summer.

The last shutdown occurred in October 2013. BIA and IHS employees, along with hundreds of thousands of other government workers, were sent home for about two weeks without pay. It came after sequestration of the federal budget imposed harsh budget cuts on Indian Country.

Get the Story:
Senate advances bill to prevent shutdown (The Hill 9/28)
Senate Acts to Avert Shutdown, More Funding Votes to Come (Roll Call 9/28)
Congress moves closer to preventing a shutdown (The Washington Post 9/28)
Most Americans Say Planned Parenthood Fight Isn’t Worth a Shutdown, Poll Finds (The New York Times 9/28)
Senate Backs Spending Measure to Avert Shutdown (The New York Times 9/29)

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Mark Trahant: Government shutdown threatens Indian Country (9/22)
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Mark Trahant: A messy Congress might actually work for tribes (03/09)