Washington — Congressional negotiators and the White House reached an agreement late Monday on funding for the Department of Homeland Security, sources familiar with the discussions confirmed to CBS News.
The agreement moves Congress one step closer to finalizing a bipartisan package to fund the government after months of disagreement and shutdown threats.
The DHS funding has appeared to be the main sticking point in a broader spending package, which includes funding for the departments of Defense, Financial Services, Labor, Health and Human Services, for State and Foreign Operations and the legislative branch. But legislative text is not expected before Wednesday, teeing up a tight timeline to approve the legislation and stave off a partial government shutdown by a Friday night deadline.
The package is the second of two, after lawmakers approved funding that covers a smaller portion of the government earlier this month.
After months of delaying funding deadlines with continuing resolutions, lawmakers have finally agreed on a framework to fund the government. Two deadlines were set to reach this agreement, with the first tranche of spending bills passing relatively easily. This week's deadline was put in place to allow more time for lawmakers to come to terms on the larger package, which includes historically controversial subject matter.
One of the biggest hurdles in reaching an agreement was funding for the Department of Homeland Security, which has gained new importance amidst the ongoing border security debate in Congress.
Despite the agreement, the challenge now lies in getting the legislation swiftly passed through Congress before the deadline. The House is expected to have 72 hours to review the package before a vote later in the week. Any delay could lead to backlash against Speaker Mike Johnson for breaking the commitment, potentially causing the deadline to pass before the Senate can approve the measure and risking a government shutdown on Saturday morning. As a result, there may be a need for an additional short-term measure to keep the government funded this week.
