Biden signs stopgap measure to avert government shutdown

March 12 (UPI) -- President Joe Biden has signed into law a stopgap measure to prevent a government shutdown.

Biden signed the continuing resolution to fund the government through Tuesday. The government faced a midnight deadline to finalize the stopgap measure.

The Senate passed the government funding bill and a sweeping appropriations legislation by a 68-31 vote Thursday night, which funds the government through September and includes $13.6 billon in aid for Ukraine, along with the continuing resolution to allow time for the larger legislation to make it to the White House.

Biden will likely sign the larger $1.5 trillion government funding bill next week.

The bill also included a provision to reauthorize the Violence Against Women Act, which has been a critical part of Biden's agenda, but excluded additional COVID-19 funding that the White House had sought.

"We thank leaders in the House and Senate for their partnership in getting this bill done, and the President looks forward to signing it into law," White House press secretary Jen Psaki said in a statement late Thursday. "At the same time, we continue to call on Congress to provide the funds urgently needed to prevent severe disruptions to our COVID response."