DHS to shut down after lawmakers, White House fail to reach agreement on funding and reforms

The Homeland Security Department is set to shut down over the weekend after lawmakers failed to reach an agreement on funding it, leaving most of the DHS workforce on the verge of missing more paychecks. 

Every other agency in government has received full-year funding for fiscal 2026, but Democrats have withheld their votes for DHS as they seek reforms to President Trump’s immigration enforcement crackdown in the wake of multiple citizens being fatally shot by department employees. Most DHS employees—about 92%—will continue to work, while around 23,000 will be sent home on furlough. 

Department officials have noted that Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Customs and Border Protection can tap funding provided by the One Big Beautiful Bill Act to continue operations and, most likely, ensure on-time pay. Those on furlough at other agencies or working because their jobs are critical to protecting life or property face the prospect of delayed paychecks, depending on how long the shutdown drags on. 

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., has laid out his caucus’ demands for DHS reforms, including the removal of masks by DHS law enforcement personnel, mandated use of body cameras, a requirement for third-party warrants to enter homes, the end of roving patrols in metropolitan areas by ICE and more uniform restrictions on use of force by federal agents.

His party on Thursday voted down a measure that would have enabled a short-term extension of DHS funding and both chambers of Congress have left town, making the single-department shutdown an inevitability. Lawmakers are set to be out all of next week for a scheduled recess, though leadership noted they could be called back if an agreement is reached between Senate Democrats and the White House. 

“Democrats have been very clear,” Schumer said on Thursday. “We will not support an extension of the status quo.” 

While the Trump administration announced it would withdraw ICE agents from Minneapolis, a flashpoint in the president’s immigration enforcement, Schumer said the issue “cannot be solved by executive fiat alone.” 

“We first and foremost need legislation,” the Democratic leader said. 

Republicans have expressed an openness to meeting some of the Democrats’ demands, but called others—such as mask removal by ICE agents—non-starters. Democrats and the White House have exchanged legislative proposals, but by all accounts the two sides remain far apart. 

Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., accused Democrats of being more interested in creating a political issue than finding a policy solution. He added they were rejecting the opportunity to keep funded the “important agencies so critical to the functioning of our federal government and the employees who work there, who shouldn't be held hostage in a government shutdown.”

DHS officials told lawmakers this week a shutdown would hurt recruiting, damage morale and stymie long-term planning and projects. The Coast Guard will curtail training and ground some aircraft, while the Transportation Security Administration’s leaders warned of delays at airports. The Federal Emergency Management Agency will struggle to make payments for long-term recovery efforts, while the Secret Service is planning to pause reforms that are currently underway. 

Several officials noted their agencies are still feeling the impacts of the shutdown last fall, which lasted a record-setting 43 days. 

Democrats this week put forward a bill that would have funded every DHS agency aside from ICE and CBP, though Republicans declined to take it up.