Article snippet: Lawmakers added $24.7 billion in emergency and “off-book” spending to a nearly $1.4 trillion package as they sought to settle differences and finish the congressional appropriations bills for the fiscal year. The White House and Congress had reached a $1.37 trillion deal in July that increased defense spending by $22 billion and domestic spending by $12 billion. But the final deal brings the sum total to $1.394 trillion and includes emergency funding for natural disasters, the 2020 census, medical funding and other priorities. “I’m pleased that we have reached a bipartisan agreement that will keep government open, provide the certainty of full-year funding and make strong investments in key priorities for American communities,” said House Appropriations Committee Chairwoman MORE (D-N.Y.). “With higher spending levels in line with the bipartisan budget agreement, we are scaling up funding for priorities that will make our country safer and stronger and help hardworking families get ahead,” she added. The plus-ups have earned consternation from deficit watchers who warned about the deficit-financed spending increases. The deficit is on track to surpass $1 trillion for the first time since 2012 this year. Negotiators added the sweeteners after seeing their talks stall since July. The two sides were divided over a number of high-profile issues, including MORE's proposed border wall. Two stopgap measures were needed to keep the government open as talks continued. On... Link to the full article to read more