The House of Representatives passed a $94.5 billion bill on Tuesday to pay for continuing US military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan, hurricane relief, bird flu preparations and border security at home.
The House-Senate compromise bill contains $66 billion for the two wars, bringing the cost of the three-year-old war in Iraq to about $320 billion. Operations in Afghanistan have now tallied about $89 billion, according to the Congressional Research Service.
The bill, which passed by a 351-67 vote, had only minimal debate last night.
It contains almost $20 billion in funds to further deal with the remaining hurricane devastation along the Gulf Cast. Much of the money would go to Louisiana for housing aid, flood control projects and a new veterans hospital in New Orleans.
It also provides funding for small-business disaster loans, rebuilding federal facilities and replenishing Federal Emergency Management Agency disaster-relief coffers.