Lapse in Appropriations Leads to Hopefully Short-lived Partial Government Shutdown
On Friday, the Senate voted to separate a DHS funding bill from the remaining five bills funding other agencies for the rest of the fiscal year. The splitting of the DHS bill stems from increased pressure to place restrictions on Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) operations.
It’s important to note that while we are in a partial government shutdown, the agencies affected are still carrying out essential operations. Six of the twelve total appropriations bills have already been signed into law by President Trump. The agencies funded through these bills are funded through the end of the fiscal year and are not affected by the shutdown. These include Military Construction/Veterans Affairs, the Legislative Branch (Congress), Interior/Environment (including USFW and EPA), Energy and Water Development (including USACE), Commerce/Justice/Science (including all Department of Commerce Agencies), and Agriculture (USDA.)
The agencies that are part of the partial package passed by the Senate include: Transportation/Housing Urban Development (HUD), State/Foreign Operations, Labor/HHS, Defense, and Financial Services. The partial legislation does extend funding for DHS (which includes CBP) through February 13 to give Congress time to negotiate changes to ICE. If a full year funding bill for DHCS is not passed within the next two weeks, another continuing resolution would be needed to extend funding for DHS or face a longer shutdown of operations. The intention of lawmakers is to avoid a shutdown that lasts more than a few days.
As this situation develops, we will keep you informed.