WASHINGTON, DC – A little after 2:00 a.m. this morning, the U.S. Senate approved by unanimous consent an agreement to end the nearly six-week-long shutdown of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS). The funding bill passed by the full U.S. Senate mirrors the legislation Democrats offered on March 5—and have repeatedly tried to pass through unanimous consent, but before today, Republicans routinely objected and President Trump urged them not to reach an agreement.

The Senate-passed bill would fund the Transportation Security Administration (TSA), the U.S. Coast Guard, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Agency (CISA), and customs officers at border checkpoints, while excluding ICE and the Border Patrol as Democrats continue to press for needed reforms in the wake of the fatal shootings of Renee Good and Alex Pretti. ICE and the Border Patrol, which were involved in those incidents and have yet to be held accountable, receive no new appropriations in the bill. The agreement guarantees backpay to federal workers who went without pay during the shutdown.

Today, U.S. Senator Jack Reed urged House Republican leaders to quickly pass the bill and issued the following statement:

“Throughout this process Democrats have prioritized listening to the American people and upholding our shared values. Republicans have sought to use airport chaos as cover to try to punish federal employees, force through a voter-suppression bill, nuke the filibuster, and jam in other partisan items. It didn't work.

“Now we finally have an overdue agreement that was on the table for weeks. Republicans gave up: There’s no money for ICE and nothing for Border Patrol.

“Democrats will continue pushing for commonsense reforms to rein in out of control ICE and Border Patrol employees and hold them accountable for unjustified and unconstitutional actions. Republicans ignore the American people's call for reform at their peril.

“We must continue working to safeguard our airports and our homeland. This agreement moves us along to the next round and we’ve got to keep standing up and standing together for what is right. Now the House needs to do its job and pass this agreement.”