Lawmakers introduce compromise ‘minibus’ spending bill

House and Senate appropriators late Monday night released a compromise spending ‘minibus’ that combines three of the 12 annual appropriations bills and a temporary spending bill to fund the rest of the government through Dec. 16.

The bill, set for a Thursday vote in the House, is the first conferenced spending bill to go through Congress since 2009. All funding in 2011 was determined through catch-all continuing resolutions. For fiscal 2012, which began Oct. 1, Congress has yet to pass any of the regular bills.