House approves Homeland Security spending bill

The House approved a Department of Homeland Security spending bill Thursday night that would cut department spending by about 1 percent in 2013.

The $39.1 billion bill, H.R. 5855, was approved in a 234-182 vote that saw scant support from Democrats — 17 Democrats voted with Republicans to pass the bill, and 16 Republicans voted against it.

The DHS bill is the third 2013 spending bill passed by the House; the House is expected to start another, funding the Legislative Branch, on Friday.

Consideration on the two other spending bills, funding the Veterans Administration and the Department of Energy, were marked by Republican splits on whether those bills should be cut further. But the DHS bill was different, as most amendments were policy-related and did not seek to cut programs to reduce the deficit.

Earlier in the evening, the House approved an amendment that would prohibit funds from being used to operate a "public advocate" position for illegal immigrants.

Members also considered an amendment that would have stripped Transportation Security Administration (TSA) airport screeners of official-looking uniforms. But they rejected that proposal.

And late Wednesday, the House approved more funding for grants to firefighters and to boost funding for the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

House passage sends the bill to a Senate that is unlikely to consider it. The bill also faces a veto threat from the Obama administration: the administration has said it would veto all House spending bills that together spend less than the discretionary spending levels agreed to last year.

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