Federal Lawmakers Reach Tentative Budget Deal, Avoid Government Shutdown

Don Edwards San Francisco Bay National Wildlife Refuge, Social Security offices and other departments that fall under federal government authority will stay open after Democratic and Republican leaders made a tentative deal on the federal budget.

The Huffington Post reports congressional and White House negotiators came up with a compromise late Friday night to pay for government operations through the end of September while trimming $38.5 billion in spending.

“Lawmakers then approved a days-long stopgap measure to keep the government running while the details of the new spending plan were written into legislation,” according to the Huffington Post report. “Actual approval of the deal would come in mid-week.”

President Barack Obama talks about the deal in his weekly address.

“It means that small businesses can get the loans they need, our families can get the mortgages they applied for, folks can visit our national parks and museums, and hundreds of thousands of Americans will get their paychecks on time – including our brave men and women in uniform,” Obama said.

On Friday, Don Edwards and other wildlife refuges throughout the San Francisco Bay Area prepared for a potential government shutdown if lawmakers could not reach a budget agreement.

You may read more about the budget negotiations and the news media coverage here.