House votes to fund Department of Homeland Security, ending partial DHS shutdown

The U.S. House of Representatives voted April 30 to fund much of the DHS through September, bringing a record-breaking partial Department of Homeland Security (DHS) shutdown to an end.

The House voted on HR 7147 by voice April 30, without a formal roll call, according to AP News. The partial shutdown began Feb. 14. 

Amid the efforts to pass a bill, Democrats had refused to fund U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Border Patrol and advocated for funding only the TSA and other DHS-operated agencies. Republicans rejected that plan. 

According to AP News, Republicans in the House and Senate eventually opted to address the ICE funding separately through budget reconciliation, enabling Speaker of the House Mike Johnson to unlock a bipartisan bill focusing on much of the rest of the DHS. Once signed into law, the House-approved bill will resume funding for the Secret Service, Coast Guard, and Federal Emergency Management Agency, according to FOX News. 

President Donald Trump is expected to sign the bill into law soon.

Many House Republicans had viewed the bill “as a dead letter” when the Senate passed it unanimously last month, FOX reported, and Johnson had initially declined to bring the bill to the floor “over objections to language he said defunded law enforcement.” 

However, FOX News Digital obtained an internal memo the White House recently sent to Hill offices that indicated concerns regarding what would happen if the Senate’s partial DHS bill failed to pass. DHS employees had been receiving payments through existing funds since early April. 

“If this funding is exhausted, the Administration will be unable to pay DHS personnel beginning in May, which will once again unleash havoc on air travel, leave critical law enforcement officers — including our brave Secret Service agents — and the Coast Guard without paychecks, and jeopardize national security,” the memo read, according to FOX. 

Johnson dropped his objections to the Senate bill after House Republicans advanced the efforts to fund ICE, according to the outlet. AP News reports that House Republicans adopted a budget resolution in a 215-211 vote April 29 that focuses on funding ICE operations through the remainder of Trump’s term. 

In a statement, Johnson emphasized that passing the budget resolution is “very important” as it ensures “border security and immigration enforcement will continue today and well into the future, despite Democrat attempts to re-open our borders and protect criminal illegal aliens from removal.”

Underscoring the major effects the 75-day shutdown had on TSA, Delta Air Lines issued a statement expressing relief and gratitude after the House passed the bill to re-open DHS. 

“Unfortunately, this unprecedented shutdown which forced TSA officers to go without a paycheck for weeks, has led to over 1,000 screening officers leaving DHS to seek other employment,” the company said. “While today’s news is welcome, we know this funding only lasts through the end of September.”

Citing that impending deadline, Delta called on Congress to pass bi-partisan legislation to guarantee air traffic controllers and TSA officials receive payment if another shutdown occurs. 

“Jeopardizing our vital aviation system by asking our essential government employees to work without pay simply should never happen again,” the company added. “We must demonstrate that we value the men and women who perform critical aviation safety and security duties — whether the government is open or not.”