WASHINGTON – Congress faces a midnight deadline to keep part of the government from shutting down. Lawmakers are meeting around the clock in hopes to pass a spending bill.
Right now, the latest spending bill making rounds does not include money to extend RECA, the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act.
Missouri U.S. Sen. Josh Hawley and others have pushed for an amendment to fund victims who suffered an autoimmune virus, a genetic disorder, or cancer from radioactive contamination in the St. Louis area that stems back to the World War II era.
“The House just needs to vote on it,” said Hawley. “The senate has passed it twice. We have rolled out the red carpet for the house to act, and they’re not doing anything.”
Congresswoman Ann Wagner wants the House to consider the issue as a stand-alone item.
Congresswoman Cori Bush says the decisions to not include it in the big spending bill is “beyond disappointing.”
Anna Wienicki reports from our Washington D.C. bureau that even without RECA, the spending bill faces an uphill battle to get approved Friday.
