But Democratic leaders had to work to secure votes for the bill from progressive lawmakers worried the Trump administration might use the funds for other purposes, such as deportation of migrants.
On Tuesday afternoon, Democrats added provisions to better protect the health of migrants in the custody of U.S. Border Patrol agents, including standards for medical care and nutrition. They also added language to set a three-month limit for any unaccompanied child migrant to spend at an intake shelter unless notice is given.
Another amendment said shelters run by contractors must meet standards of care within six months or risk losing their contracts. Representative Pramila Jayapal, the co-chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, agreed to back the bill after that provision was included.
The House legislation would also reinstate hundreds of millions of dollars in aid to El Salva dor, Guatemala and Honduras that was cut off by the Trump administration.
The same provisions that helped win over progressive Democrats were denounced by House Republicans as "poison pills." Republicans said they preferred the $4.6 billion Senate version of the bill, which has passed a committee on a bipartisan basis, and includes money - left out by the House - to pay overtime for Immigration and Customs Enforcement employees.
The House bill is a sham that "does not help our overstretched law enforcement authorities," said House Republican leader Kevin McCarthy.