It only took 76 days.
On Thursday, the United States House of Representatives unanimously approved a Senate-passed bill to fund most of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), which will soon end the shutdown that began on February 14 — the longest partial government shutdown in the history of the country. All it needs now is for Donald Trump to sign it into law.
The 76-day DHS shutdown is over
— Mike Lee (@BasedMikeLee) April 30, 2026
Better late than never
It should never have taken this long https://t.co/ByQoJWxk8a
The chamber approved the bill via voice vote and with "little fanfare," according to CBS.
It's important to note that it does not fund U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) or U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP). However, Republicans advanced a separate budget reconciliation package that will provide those agencies with funding for the next three years using only GOP votes.
The shutdown only impacted DHS, including critical agencies like the TSA, Coast Guard (civilians), FEMA, Secret Service, USCIS, CISA, ICE, CBP, and more, leaving many of them struggling to pay employees. Tens of thousands were furloughed, and many worked with delayed pay. Others quit. The shutdown led to long security lines at airports, as well as unpaid bills, delayed contracts, and cyber planning gaps, according to the White House.
Shortly before the vote, we learned that active-duty Coast Guard members were using flashlights to see because they couldn't pay their electric bills. Some were going into debt because they were not receiving payments for their reassignment moves. They were putting money on credit cards and taking out loans. We also had to cancel numerous national security exercises.
The U.S. Coast Guard cannot pay its bills. The military branch – now 75 days into the longest shutdown in U.S. history – owes over $300 million in unpaid obligations. And with thousands of utility bills overdue, totaling $5.2 million, duty stations and military housing worldwide… pic.twitter.com/kQnVlluzsW
— CBS News (@CBSNews) April 30, 2026
Democrats shut down @DHSgov, and now, members of the Coast Guard are using flashlights to light their homes, going into debt to follow orders.
— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) April 30, 2026
The @USCG has been forced to cancel "at least 30 national security exercises" ahead of major events like the World Cup.
SICKENING! pic.twitter.com/NCuocIvj3X
The shutdown was triggered by the fatal shootings of Alex Pretti and Renee Good by Border Patrol agents in Minnesota earlier this year. Democrats in Congress refused to fund DHS until Republicans agreed to new oversight rules and restrictions on border agents.
Speaker of the House Mike Johnson calls it a win for Republicans.
We got the budget resolution passed. This is very, very important because that will ensure that 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.
The net result of passing our reconciliation bill is that ICE and CBP are funded for three years, and Democrats got absolutely nothing for their political charade and shenanigans out of that.
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