What did Senate agree on DHS funding?

Senate funds DHS but leaves ICE/Border enforcement out

Congressional negotiations over Homeland Security spending ended with a partial deal in the Senate that cleared the way to reopen much of the department while excluding funding for key immigration-enforcement functions.

In separate reports, the Senate approved legislation to fund most of the Department of Homeland Security, sending the package toward the House without including funding for Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and also excluding Border Patrol funding in some versions of the deal. Democrats said ICE and deportation operations should not be funded, and House and Senate leaders treated the exclusion as the core compromise point.

Multiple stories connect this funding decision to the long shutdown’s real-world effects on airport operations. The DHS lapse produced severe security-check delays and widespread travel disruptions, including unpaid TSA workers and mounting hardship for staff. As a result, the reopening of TSA-funded functions was politically urgent.

The reports also underscore how the deal emerged through a shifting sequence of votes: lawmakers tried earlier approaches that failed, and some proposals were blocked or rejected during the standoff. Finally, Senate action ended a prolonged funding lapse that had extended for weeks.

Why it matters politically is that the funding package becomes a proxy battle over immigration enforcement. Excluding ICE and Border Patrol funding signals that lawmakers are using budget leverage to force changes in enforcement policy and oversight.

The House still faces the decision of whether to accept the Senate’s version. The final outcome in the chamber will determine whether the partial reopening lasts and whether further negotiations will follow on the immigration-enforcement carve-outs.