The clock is ticking toward a September 30 deadline to fund the government, and even with a possible deal to avert a lapse in funding, parts of the US government will start the behind-the-scenes process of preparing for a potential shutdown.

House leaders unveiled on Sunday their new legislation to avert a shutdown at the end of the month and fund the government until Dec. 20.

House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) unveiled a stopgap spending bill Sunday that would fund the federal government through Dec. 20, averting a partial shutdown weeks before the November election. The deal — negotiated with and welcomed by Democratic leaders after Johnson failed to pass a partisan stopgap bill last week — would finance the government at current spending levels and boost Secret Service funding by $231 million to better protect presidential candidates during the campaign's final stretch.

Congress must find a path forward on federal funding this week or risk a partial government shutdown just five weeks before Election Day.

Congress enters its final scheduled week of work before the November elections with a plan to avoid a government shutdown next month but only a few days left on the calendar to ge