RALEIGH, N.C. – North Carolina lawmakers agreed on a third stopgap spending measure to keep state government operating, this time imposing no deadline on themselves to strike a final budget deal.

The General Assembly on Thursday agreed to again direct Gov. Beverly Perdue and state agencies to spend no more than 84 percent of what was approved in last year’s $21 billion budget.

Legislators put no expiration date on the governor’s spending responsibility. That means Perdue could be forced to impose any spending cuts required to stay within a budget of nearly $19 billion.

Lawmakers thought they had a deal on a new two-year budget last week until Perdue said nearly $1 billion in new fees and taxes was too small to prevent education cuts.