House Passes Stop-Gap Bill Ending 71-Day DHS Partial Shutdown Through May 22

The U.S. House of Representatives on April 26, 2026 passed H.R. 7147, the Further Additional Continuing Appropriations Act, extending DHS funding through May 22, 2026 and ending the partial government shutdown that had paralyzed the Department of Homeland Security since February 14 — a 71-day partial shutdown triggered by Democratic demands for ICE use-of-force reforms following the fatal January 2026 Minneapolis killings of two American citizens by federal agents. The stop-gap measure provides no new policy mandates on ICE enforcement practices, rejecting Democratic calls for mandatory body cameras, judicial warrant requirements for home entries, and restrictions on sensitive location arrests. The shutdown had frozen TSA officer salaries (causing record airport wait times), suspended some DHS headquarters operations, and affected ICE field operations. DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin had warned of potential final paychecks for DHS personnel. The bill must still clear the Senate; the broader Senate-passed $70 billion ICE and CBP reconciliation package — authorized April 23 via a 50-48 Senate reconciliation vote — remains on track for House consideration before the June 1 deadline set by President Trump. The stop-gap effectively buys Congress additional weeks to negotiate a full-year DHS appropriations bill, but Democrats decried the measure as abandoning accountability demands following the Minneapolis killings.