Bipartisan Deal Reached to End DHS Shutdown Amid Political Turmoil

DHS Government Shutdown Congress Trump Immigration

May 1, 202610 min readNorth America

Bipartisan Deal Reached to End DHS Shutdown Amid Political Turmoil

Congress struggles to finalize DHS funding amid shutdown chaos

{"results": [{"url": "https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2026/04/02/dhs-shutdown-update-deal-to-end-government-shutdown-reached/89432891007/", "title": "DHS shutdown update: Deal to end government shutdown reached", "summary": "Summary:\n- In early April 2026, a bipartisan Senate-backed bill to fully fund the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) moved again toward ending the longest federal shutdown. The Senate re-passed its DHS bill in a brief pro forma session, sending it to the House.\n- House Republicans initially signaled acceptance of the Senate bill to end the shutdown, then reversed, creating renewed uncertainty about when the House would vote.\n- Key stakeholder quotes: Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said House Republicans \u201ccaved,\u201d while House Speaker Mike Johnson and Senate Majority Leader John Thune framed the move as following the President\u2019s directive to fund DHS on two tracks (appropriations and reconciliation).\n- The deal aims to fund DHS\u2014excluding ICE and Border Patrol in the first package\u2014on two parallel tracks, with a plan to secure longer-term funding for those agencies separately.\n- Context: The shutdown disrupted operations across the country, including airport operations, and had prompted interventions and public statements from President Donald Trump in support of the Senate approach.\n\nIf you\u2019re looking for the exact vote tallies and the status of House action, I can pull the latest updates on the House floor schedule and any final passage information."}, {"url": "https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/2026/04/12/when-is-vote-on-dhs-funding-bill-as-house-returns-from-recess-update/89580433007/", "title": "When is vote on DHS funding bill as House returns from recess? Update", "summary": "Summary:\n\n- The U.S. House of Representatives faced a prolonged government shutdown in April 2026, with most of Congress in recess.\n- Aimed actions: House Democrats sought to pass a war-powers resolution on Iran, while Republicans, especially the House Freedom Caucus, blocked a DHS funding bill that would fully fund DHS (including ICE and Border Patrol) and reopen agencies.\n- Senate: The Senate had already approved a DHS funding measure that would fund most of DHS but not ICE or Border Patrol; those agencies were reportedly still funded under a separate plan, per earlier reports.\n- Timing of votes: A House vote to end the shutdown was unlikely on the immediate schedule. The earliest potential reopening vote would be around Tuesday, April 14, 2026, if conditions aligned. The Monday schedule did not include the DHS funding bill.\n- Context: The stalemate centered on how to fund DHS and whether to include or exclude certain agencies, with House Speaker Mike Johnson negotiating with the Freedom Caucus to rally support.\n\nBottom line aligned to user query: There was no House vote on ending the DHS shutdown in mid-April 2026; Democrats pushed a war-powers resolution, while a Senate-approved DHS funding measure that excludes ICE and Border Patrol faced House opposition. The earliest possible reopening vote would be around April 14, 2026, if a plan gained enough support."}, {"url": "https://www.cnn.com/2026/04/01/politics/dhs-shutdown-republican-leaders-plan", "title": "GOP leaders declare path to end DHS shutdown \u2014 but enormous hurdles remain | CNN Politics", "author": "Sarah Ferris, Aileen Graef", "summary": "Summary:\n\n- The CNN article reports on GOP leaders\u2019 effort to end the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) partial shutdown through a two-track plan, aiming to reopen DHS while pursuing a second large immigration-focused bill.\n- Key figures: President Donald Trump, Senate Majority Leader John Thune, and House Speaker Mike Johnson publicized the plan, signaling a possible path to funding via reconciliation to bypass a filibuster.\n- Major hurdles:\n - Uncertainty about when the House will vote on the Senate\u2019s DHS funding plan, with many House Republicans demanding assurances on immigration funding.\n - Deep internal party divisions over immigration policy and the use of reconciliation.\n - The plan relies on a broader \u201cOne Big Beautiful Bill,\u201d and a second Trump megabill to secure additional immigration funding.\n- Timeline tension: Senate may take initial steps as soon as Thursday, but the House is unlikely to act in the immediate days ahead due to fragile unity and political considerations ahead of the midterm election season.\n- Context: This follows a historically long partial shutdown and ongoing intra-party dynamics over immigration enforcement funding and budget maneuvers.\n\nRelevance to query: The requested AP-style angle (April 2026, Trump signs bill ending record shutdown funding, House and Senate votes, bill signing) is not reflected in this piece. The article describes leadership efforts to end the DHS shutdown and the procedural path (reconciliation) with looming hurdles, not a concluded April 2026 signing or a completed House/Senate vote. If you need AP-style confirmation of a signed bill in April 2026, this article indicates no resolution yet."}, {"url": "https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2026/04/02/senate-funding-homeland-security-shutdown/6787cf22-2e49-11f1-aac2-f56b5ccad184_story.html", "title": "Trump says he'll sign order to resume pay for Homeland Security. His move bypasses Congress - The Washington Post", "author": "Kevin Freking, Joey Cappelletti and Collin Binkley\u2009|\u2009AP", "summary": "Summary:\n- In April 2026, President Donald Trump announced he would sign an executive order to resume pay for all Department of Homeland Security employees who had not been paid during the record-long government shutdown.\n- The action bypasses Congress, addressing payroll for DHS workers without awaiting congressional funding or approvals.\n- The report comes from the Associated Press via The Washington Post, noting the move as a unilateral step to end the pay freeze rather than a new law passed by House and Senate."}, {"url": "https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2026/04/14/when-will-dhs-shutdown-2026-end-latest-updates-as-house-returns/89603927007/", "title": "When will DHS shutdown 2026 end? Latest updates as House returns", "summary": "Summary:\n\n- The U.S. House returned from recess on April 14, 2026, amid a two-month-long Department of Homeland Security (DHS) funding hiatus. DHS remains shut down as Congress remains at odds over how to fund the department, especially immigration enforcement and border control.\n\n- Two main funding tracks are in play:\n - A bipartisan Senate bill that funds most of DHS but excludes Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Border Patrol (BP).\n - House Republican efforts to secure long-term funding for ICE and BP, potentially via a separate reconciliation bill to fund border security and immigration enforcement for the next three years.\n\n- Leaders\u2019 statements indicate plans to fund DHS on parallel tracks (appropriations and reconciliation), with discussions led by Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) and Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD). President Donald Trump has pushed for a reconciliation bill to reach the president\u2019s desk by June 1.\n\n- Background: The shutdown began February 14 and has become the longest in DHS\u2019s history. The broader government shutdown (federal government) had previously reached 43 days in 2025.\n\n- The article notes uncertainty about when the House will vote to end the DHS shutdown, as the scheduled vote was not listed on the House weekly schedule, and the two-week recess limited activity on the funding bills."}, {"url": "https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/2026/04/23/if-dhs-funding-runs-out-with-chaos-at-tsa-return-to-atlanta-airport/89748317007/", "title": "If DHS funding runs out, with chaos at TSA return to Atlanta airport?", "summary": "Summary tailored to your query:\n\n- Context: In April 2026, during a prolonged partial DHS shutdown, President Trump rerouted funds to pay TSA agents, averting an immediate pay lapse. However, back pay for hours worked before the funding and ongoing unpaid wages remained contentious.\n- Key developments:\n - TSA pay has been irregular: some officers received pay due to presidential order, but many have not received backpay, and some workers remained unpaid.\n - Atlanta\u2019s Hartsfield-Jackson Airport experienced severe security-line delays due to reduced staffing.\n - Local measures: Georgia officials moved to shield TSA workers\u2019 homes from utility shutoffs amid missed payments.\n - Privatization option: TSA Deputy Administrator Ha Nguyen McNeill suggested privatizing screening as a way to insulate salaries from political funding disputes, citing Atlanta\u2019s longer lines as a troubled example; privatization tied to broader policy discussions (Project 2025).\n- Political backdrop:\n - Funding and pay structure became a focal point in the Georgia U.S. Senate race and broader House/Senate negotiations over DHS funding.\n - The funding situation raised questions about the reliability of TSA operations under ongoing political stalemates and the potential shift toward private screening to avoid future shutdown impacts.\n- Bottom line: By April 2026, President Trump\u2019s funding intervention prevented a full-scale TSA disruption, but unpaid back wages persisted, and debates intensified over privatizing TSA as a workaround to congressional funding volatility, with Atlanta serving as a case study of the disruption when funds ran low.\n\nIf you want, I can align this further to AP-specific phrasing and provide a consolidated AP-style abstract."}, {"url": "https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2026/04/14/homeland-security-furloughed-workers-shutdown-trump-mullin/89605242007/", "title": "DHS calls furloughed employees back to work amid historic shutdown", "summary": "Summary:\n\n- DHS has ordered thousands of furloughed employees to return to work using \u201cavailable funding,\u201d even as most of the department remains unfunded amid the longest partial government shutdown in U.S. history.\n- President Donald Trump signed a memorandum on April 3 directing DHS to provide pay and benefits lost during the shutdown; Mullin says most DHS employees should receive paychecks, with payments expected by Friday or Monday for some banks. Future pay depends on Congress.\n- DHS\u2014the department with more than 260,000 employees\u2014has not been fully funded for eight weeks. Congressional stalls persist over immigration enforcement and border policy funding, despite a bipartisan Senate plan to fund most of DHS.\n- Disputes have widened divisions in the House and stalled negotiations, with no clear end in sight or firm timeline for a House vote to reopen DHS.\n- Context: Two U.S. citizens were fatally shot by immigration officers earlier in the year, fueling funding and policy battles."}, {"url": "https://edition.cnn.com/2026/04/21/politics/gop-senate-budget-proposal-dhs-funding", "title": "Senate GOP unveils $70B immigration plan in bid to end DHS shutdown | CNN Politics", "author": "Sarah Ferris", "summary": "Summary:\n- The article reports that Senate GOP leaders proposed a $70 billion plan to fund immigration enforcement (ICE and border patrol) to keep DHS functioning through the remainder of Donald Trump\u2019s term, bypassing Democrats.\n- The plan uses a reconciliation budget maneuver to pass immigration funding without Democratic votes, aiming to reopen DHS despite the shutdown.\n- Key players: Senate Majority Leader John Thune; House Speaker Mike Johnson; GOP leadership in both chambers.\n- Process: The Senate budget resolution text was released as the first step; a vote on the measure could come later in the week, followed by a House move. If successful, it would likely require extensive GOP support in both chambers to pass.\n- Contention: Republicans risk internal disagreement over sequencing and whether ICE and border patrol funding could be left unfunded if the rest of the department is funded first.\n- The piece notes the political stakes tied to upcoming elections and potential shifts in chamber control. It also mentions a potential \u201cvote-a-rama\u201d (all-night session) if the measure proceeds.\n\nRelevance to user query (AP April 2026 context and DHS funding): This CNN article describes a GOP strategy in April 2026 to use budget reconciliation to fund immigration enforcement and end the DHS shutdown without Democratic votes, signaling how Republicans aimed to resolve the impasse and keep DHS operating through Trump\u2019s term. It does not cover AP\u2019s reported signing of a bill by Trump or subsequent House/Senate votes beyond the initial steps."}, {"url": "http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2026/04/03/trump-order-dhs-employees-paid-shutdown/89461552007/", "title": "Trump orders pay and benefits for DHS workers during shutdown", "author": "Marc Ramirez \n,\u00a0\n Lori Comstock", "summary": "Summary:\n- In April 2026, President Donald Trump signed a memorandum to ensure pay and benefits for all U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) employees during a as-yet-ongoing partial government shutdown, including TSA, ICE, CBP, and FEMA staff.\n- The memo, titled \u201cLiberating the Department of Homeland Security From the Democrat-Caused Shutdown,\u201d directs DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin and OMB Director Russell Vought to use funds with a logical nexus to DHS functions to compensate DHS employees as if the shutdown had not occurred.\n- Trump labeled the situation an emergency threatening national security and pledged that once regular DHS funding is restored, funding accounts should be adjusted to maintain operations as planned prior to the lapse.\n- The shutdown at that time was the longest partial U.S. government shutdown in history, affecting more than 35,000 DHS employees due to federal funding gaps.\n- Political context: Republicans (Senate Majority Leader Thune and House Speaker Johnson) indicated a deal to fund DHS, with a two-track approach involving a separate budget reconciliation package and potential resistance from additional measures like the SAVE America Act.\n- The stoppage remained contentious, with debate over including ICE/Border Patrol funding in the broader bill and how to proceed with funding while attempting to end the shutdown."}, {"url": "https://www.theglobeandmail.com/world/us-politics/article-dhs-funding-bill-us-senate-house/", "title": "Trump to sign emergency order paying DHS employees, Congress Republicans to decide next steps - The Globe and Mail", "highlights": ["Trump to sign emergency order paying DHS employees, Congress Republicans to decide next steps - The Globe and Mail\n[...]\nFederal funding for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security remained in limbo on Thursday despite the Senate clearing the way for the House of Representatives to pass legislation that would end a nearly seven-week partial shutdown.\n[...]\nMeanwhile, lawmakers got some breathing room, after President Donald Trump announced that he will use his executive powers to temporarily pay all DHS workers while Congress searches for a way to pass a bill with funding through Sept. 30, the end of this fiscal year.\n[...]\nThe Senate bill awaiting House action provides no additional funding for immigration law enforcement activities that already are robustly funded.\n[...]\nThe House held a brief session without acting upon legislation that was passed by the Senate late last week. It is next scheduled to meet on Monday.\n[...]\nAlso, House Speaker Mike Johnson was set to hold a call with his rank-and-file on Thursday to discuss next steps.\n[...]\nSenate Majority Leader John Thune, speaking to a near-empty chamber early on Thursday, cleared the way for progress on ending the DHS funding fight by formally killing a 60-day, stopgap bill that had been passed by the House but had no chance of passing the Senate.\n[...]\nSenate and House Republican leaders announced on Wednesday that they had reached a deal to finally end the DHS shutdown. But it was unclear whether House Republican rank-and-file would support that agreement.\n[...]\nHouse passage of the Senate bill would send it to President Donald Trump for signing into law.\n[...]\nEven with Trump\u2019s temporary payments to all DHS workers, Congress still has to figure out a way to fund DHS operations for workers at an array of agencies, including the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency and Coast Guard.\n[...]\nAides to Johnson were not immediately available for comment on next steps the House will take to break the DHS funding logjam."]}]}

Originally published by The Hill.

Sources (19)

Trump says he'll sign order to resume pay for Homeland Security. His move bypasses Congress - The Washington Post

washingtonpost.com

Trump signs memo directing DHS to pay all workers amid shutdown | CNN Politics

cnn.com

GOP leaders declare path to end DHS shutdown — but enormous hurdles remain | CNN Politics

cnn.com

DHS shutdown update: Deal to end government shutdown reached

usatoday.com

Hill GOP braces for ‘nightmare week’ as pressure mounts to end DHS funding standoff | CNN Politics

cnn.com

Timeline of US government shutdowns over last 50 years

usatoday.com

Why has the U.S. government shut down? Here’s what to know - The Globe and Mail

theglobeandmail.com

The government shutdown is now the longest - and likely the most damaging in US history | CNN Business

edition.cnn.com

U.S. government shutdown is now the longest in history | CBC News

cbc.ca

The U.S. shutdown is over: Trump signs bill ending over 6 weeks of government paralysis | CBC News

cbc.ca

Republicans launch a new effort to fund the Department of Homeland Security - The Washington Post

washingtonpost.com

When is vote on DHS funding bill as House returns from recess? Update

usatoday.com

When will DHS shutdown 2026 end? Latest updates as House returns

usatoday.com

If DHS funding runs out, with chaos at TSA return to Atlanta airport?

usatoday.com

U.S. Senate votes to advance ICE, Border Patrol funding plan in bid to reopen Homeland Security - The Globe and Mail

theglobeandmail.com

DHS calls furloughed employees back to work amid historic shutdown

usatoday.com

Senate GOP unveils $70B immigration plan in bid to end DHS shutdown | CNN Politics

edition.cnn.com

Trump orders pay and benefits for DHS workers during shutdown

usatoday.com

Trump to sign emergency order paying DHS employees, Congress Republicans to decide next steps - The Globe and Mail

theglobeandmail.com

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