House relents, finally ends record-breaking Homeland Security shutdown [View all]

Last edited Thu Apr 30, 2026, 05:32 PM - Edit history (2)

Source: USA Today

Updated April 30, 2026, 2:13 p.m. ET


WASHINGTON ‒ Congress finally ended the historic Department of Homeland Security shutdown, resolving the longest crisis of its kind in American history. In an abrupt afternoon voice vote on Thursday, April 30, the House of Representatives passed a funding bill for the agency with seemingly unanimous support, sending it to President Donald Trump's desk.

The vote resolved a political showdown that has plagued Capitol Hill and the country for more than two months. The ordeal, which exposed fierce acrimony between House and Senate Republicans, left thousands of workers without pay, upended air travel and jeopardized Americans' safety. After the White House unilaterally shifted money to pay the agency's workers, it also likely wrought longer-term implications for Congress' authority over federal spending.

On Wednesday night, the House cleared a key hurdle by greenlighting a budget blueprint to funnel $70 billion to Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Border Patrol. The broader DHS funding bill doesn't include funding for immigration enforcement, which became a sticking point for GOP hardliners in the House. The Senate unanimously approved the DHS bill weeks ago, but House Speaker Mike Johnson let it sit as he worked to smooth over party infighting.

The delay frustrated lawmakers on both sides of the aisle, including Sen. Patty Murray of Washington, the top Democrat on the Senate Appropriations Committee. "Speaker Johnson extended the DHS shutdown for over a month for no reason at all," she said in a statement. "This is the same bill the Senate unanimously passed five weeks ago."

Read more: https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2026/04/30/department-of-homeland-security-shutdown-ending-when/89872578007/

Link to tweet