U.S. Senate passes two-year budget bill

The U.S. Senate voted 64-35 early Friday to pass a two-year budget bill that raises federal spending levels and expands the government's debt limit.

The bill, already passed by the Congress earlier this week, now awaits to be signed into law by President Barack Obama no later than Nov. 3, for the Treasury Department would otherwise exhaust its borrowing capacity and could no longer fund the government's payment obligations.

The bill would extend the government's borrowing authority through March 2017, when a new Congress and new president are in place. It would also raise federal spending by 80 billion U.S. dollars over the 2016 and 2017 fiscal years for defense and civilian programs.

Obama applauded the passage of the legislation, saying that it locks in two years of funding and should help break the cycle of government shutdowns that have harmed the U.S. economy.

The bill provides top-line spending numbers, leaving it the appropriators' responsibility to hash out specifics.

Lawmakers still need to pass detailed spending bills for the fiscal year 2016 by mid-December, when the current short-term spending bill expires. Endi