NO WORRIES

FEMA Can Last Until Thursday

Which could avert government shutdown crisis.

Wow, two more days! Actually, that could make a big difference. A Senate aide says that the Federal Emergency Management Agency has enough money to last until Thursday, not Tuesday, as originally predicted. The latest estimate is that FEMA has $114 million left in its disaster aid fund, which could be significant because it’s possible that the agency won’t need any additional funds until the new budget year begins. Congress has been in a standoff on whether to pass Democratic Sen. Harry Reid’s legislation that provides FEMA with the disaster-relief money without offsetting spending, which the GOP is against. If Republicans kill the bill, the government could shut down this weekend. If FEMA doesn’t need the funds, the crisis could be averted.