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The Senate on Monday approved a bipartisan continuing resolution to reopen the federal government after a 41-day shutdown, sending the measure to the House for final passage.
Senators voted 60-40 to advance the bill, which would fund military construction, veterans’ programs, the Department of Agriculture and the legislative branch through Sept. 30, 2026, while extending funding for all other agencies until Jan. 30. The House is expected to vote Wednesday, according to Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La.
“I am very, very happy to be able to say we are coming to the end,” Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., said after the vote, thanking unpaid staff and Capitol Police for working through “six excruciating weeks.”
President Donald Trump signaled his support for the measure, calling it “a very good deal” and saying he would “abide by” the agreement. Speaking from the Oval Office, the president said the deal would “reopen the country very quickly” and reverse the mass federal layoffs that occurred during the shutdown.
Johnson urged lawmakers to return to Washington “right now,” citing delays caused by the shutdown. “Congress needs to do this as quickly as possible,” he said. The House has been largely out of session since mid-September.
The breakthrough came after weeks of stalemate when three former governors — Democratic Sens. Jeanne Shaheen and Maggie Hassan of New Hampshire and independent Angus King of Maine — agreed to advance three bipartisan spending bills and extend funding through late January. In return, Republicans promised a December vote on extending Affordable Care Act premium tax credits but offered no guarantee of passage.
The legislation also reverses the layoffs ordered by the Trump administration when the shutdown began Oct. 1 and guarantees back pay for federal workers, shielding them from further job cuts through January.
Along with Shaheen, King, and Hassan, Democratic Sens. Tim Kaine of Virginia, Dick Durbin of Illinois, John Fetterman of Pennsylvania, and Nevada’s Catherine Cortez Masto and Jacky Rosen voted in favor. The rest of the Democratic caucus, including Majority Leader Chuck Schumer of New York, opposed the deal.
After a two-hour meeting with his caucus, Schumer said he could not “in good faith” support the compromise. “We will not give up the fight,” he said, adding that Democrats have “sounded the alarm” on healthcare.
