Funding lapse set to trigger US Department of Homeland Security shutdown

The United States Department of Homeland Security is expected to enter a shutdown after lawmakers failed to pass legislation to keep the agency funded beyond Saturday midnight in Washington, D.C.

The Senate adjourned on Friday without reaching agreement on a budget bill to finance the DHS, while the House of Representatives had already begun a weeklong recess on Thursday evening.

The lapse leaves the department, which oversees immigration enforcement and disaster response, facing a partial shutdown as its funding expires.

Minnesota crackdown fuels standoff

The budget impasse comes amid controversy surrounding a federal immigration operation in Minnesota in January that resulted in the deaths of two US citizens.

Reports said masked immigration agents threatened bystanders and used disproportionate force during the crackdown.

On February 4, Democratic lawmakers in Congress presented a list of demands aimed at reforming Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), which operates under the DHS.

Their proposals included banning ICE agents from wearing masks to conceal their identities, prohibiting racial profiling, and ending immigration raids at “sensitive locations” such as schools and churches.

Democrats warned that without “common sense reforms,” they would withhold support for any DHS funding legislation.

Senate vote falls short

President Donald Trump’s Republican Party rejected the Democratic conditions, describing them as unreasonable.

Although Republicans control both chambers of Congress, Senate rules require 60 votes to advance major legislation because of the filibuster.

On Thursday, the 100-member Senate recorded 52 votes in favor of the funding measure and 47 against it. Nearly all Democratic senators voted to block the bill, with the exception of Pennsylvania’s John Fetterman.

Before the vote, Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer criticized the proposed legislation in a video message.

“The Republican bill on the floor allows ICE to smash in doors without warrants, to wear masks and not be identified, to use children as bait for their parents,” Schumer said.

“We are keeping our word: No funding for ICE until it is reined in, until the violence ends.”

By Friday, many lawmakers had already departed Washington. Some, including Senator Mark Kelly, traveled abroad to attend the Munich Security Conference, while others returned to their districts.

Travel sector warns of disruptions

If prolonged, the shutdown could require tens of thousands of federal employees to work without pay, and some agencies may reduce staffing until funding resumes.

Major travel and hospitality organizations, including Airlines for America, issued a joint statement warning of possible disruptions.

The Transportation Security Administration (TSA), which manages airport security, is part of the DHS.

“Travelers and the US economy cannot afford to have essential TSA personnel working without pay, which increases the risk of unscheduled absences and call outs, and ultimately can lead to higher wait times and missed or delayed flights,” the groups said.

Immigration operations to continue

Despite the funding lapse, immigration enforcement efforts are expected to continue largely unaffected.

ICE and Customs and Border Protection (CBP) have already received billions of dollars through Trump’s “One Big Beautiful Bill Act,” approved by Congress last year.

Earlier this month, lawmakers passed a broader government funding package through the end of September, but it provided only two weeks of funding for the DHS.

The department’s looming shutdown comes one day after the Trump administration claimed it would end its immigration operation in Minnesota.

Observers said the dispute underscores Democratic opposition to ICE’s tactics and the president’s mass deportation campaign, an issue expected to feature prominently in November’s midterm elections.

A recent poll conducted by PBS News, NPR, and the Marist research firm found that 65 percent of respondents believed ICE had gone too far in its enforcement efforts.

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