The U.S. Senate reached an agreement to fund most of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) earlier this week.
Lawmakers passed a bill intended to reopen parts of DHS that had been shut down due to a budget impasse that started in mid‑February.
The plan would fund agencies like the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) and Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), while leaving out Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and some Customs and Border Patrol functions.
Senators from both parties approved the measure in an overnight session, hoping to relieve travel disruptions and staffing shortages at airports.
However, the bill now faces a major roadblock in the House of Representatives, where Republican leaders rejected the Senate’s version.
House lawmakers want a broader funding plan that includes ICE and full DHS enforcement functions before they will pass any funding.
The disagreement has kept the partial government shutdown going, with tens of thousands of DHS employees still unpaid and airport security lines stretched.
President Donald Trump has signed an executive order to ensure TSA officers begin receiving pay, but the broader stalemate continues and travel chaos persists.
