US lawmakers agree $1.1 trillion spending deal

The spending agreement, which is expected to be put to a House of Representatives vote on Thursday, was hailed as a compromise between fiscal responsibility and the pragmatic running of government.

"This bill will allow us to fulfill our constitutional duty to responsibly fund the federal government and avoid a shutdown," House Appropriations Committee Chairman Hal Rogers said in a statement.

The terms of the $1.1-trillion (880 billion euros) spending bill agreed late Tuesday keep fiscal 2015 domestic spending relatively unchanged, while adding funds to fight "Islamic State" (IS) militants in Iraq and Syria and to try to combat Ebola in West Africa.

The deal would fund all agencies through to September 2015, except for Homeland Security, which will have its funding extending only until February 27. The exception is expected to give Republicans more leverage over the agency's implementation of President Barack Obama's executive order on immigration.

An agreement was made to limit new regulations on derivatives trading by large banks. Also included in the provision of the bill is a cut to the budget of the Environmental Protection Agency of $60 million and measures to "rein in regulatory overreach."

One of the more controversial aspects of the 1,603-page bill that remained in place was a measure allowing wealthy individuals to make significantly larger donations to political parties.

rc/shs (AFP, AP)