U.S. House Majority Leader Hoyer sets 5 p.m deadline for next steps to fund gov't

[December 19, 2020]    WASHINGTON (Reuters) - With fewer than 10 hours remaining before U.S. government agencies run out of money, U.S. House of Representatives Majority Leader Steny Hoyer set a 5 p.m. ET (2200 GMT) deadline for deciding how to avert shutting down agency operations.

United States House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-MD) leaves the House floor after voting, amid the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak, on U.S. Capitol Hill, in Washington, D.C., U.S., October 2, 2020. REUTERS/Ken Cedeno/File Photo

Speaking to reporters in the Capitol, Hoyer said he was recessing the House "and then I'm going to make a decision at 5 o'clock."

The options, the Democratic leader said, were "hopefully" having a deal on a coronavirus aid bill that would be attached to a $1.4 trillion government funding bill, passing a third stopgap funding bill or keeping the House in a recess longer.

Hoyer said he was "adamantly opposed" to a fourth option, allowing government shutdowns to begin at midnight.

He said no duration for a stopgap funding bill has been determined yet. Earlier this week he publicly mulled the possibility of one extending into early next week.

(Reporting by Richard Cowan; Editing by David Gregorio)

[© 2020 Thomson Reuters. All rights reserved.]

Copyright 2020 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.  Thompson Reuters is solely responsible for this content.