WASHINGTON — The House on Thursday approved a Senate-passed bill that would fund a large portion of the Department of Homeland Security, ending the sprawling federal agency’s record 75-day shutdown.
President Donald Trump had urged lawmakers to pass the bill and pledged to sign it. It was passed “by voice,” with members shouting their approval without recording individual votes.
The bill will reopen DHS without providing new funding for Immigration and Customs Enforcement or the U.S. Border Patrol, as Democrats demand changes to immigration enforcement. Republicans will attempt to fund these agencies separately.
The House’s action took place at a critical time. Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin had warned lawmakers that if they did not pass the funding by Thursday, emergency funding would run out and thousands of workers would go unpaid.
The successful vote came before lawmakers in the House and Senate left for a weeklong vacation late Thursday. Lawmakers in the House and Senate still need to ensure a foreign spy program does not expire on Thursday.
Once Trump signs the funding bill, DHS agencies such as the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the Coast Guard, the Transportation Security Administration and the Secret Service will be funded through the fiscal year ending September 30.
Democrats had forced the shutdown of DHS on Feb. 14, after Republicans rejected their demands for reforms to the Trump administration’s immigration enforcement tactics, such as requiring body cameras and limiting raids in sensitive locations like schools and hospitals.
At the end of March, the Senate, unanimously approved the legislation to fund most DHS agencies except ICE and Border Patrol. House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., rejected the plan at the time, calling it a “joke.”
Johnson cleared the vote on the Senate-passed funding bill after seeing the party’s progress on funding ICE and the Border Patrol.
“I think passing our budget resolution yesterday was a very important step, and we absolutely need to make sure that these two critical immigration and border enforcement agencies are fully funded, and Republicans need to do that ourselves,” Johnson told reporters Thursday.
He added: “I’m aware of the deadlines. I’ve tried to press this point as aggressively as anyone. … We will get the job done.”
On Wednesday, the House passed the Senate-passed budget resolution that would create a funding pathway for ICE and the Border Patrol for the duration of Trump’s term.
The budget measure directs congressional committees to draft legislation and authorize $70 billion to fund Immigration, Customs and Border Patrol for approximately the next three years.
Under the budget reconciliation process, Republicans would be able to bypass Democrats’ filibuster and push the legislation through the Senate. with only 51 votes. They would not need to make the policy changes Democrats demand.
The House is still waiting for the Senate to send it a near-term expansion of the espionage program, known as Section 702 of FISA. Members of both parties have said it would be devastating for national security if authorization for this program expired.
