Democrats in the U.S. House of Representatives are pushing a bill from Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D-CT-3) that would fund the Department of Homeland Security, minus the parts that deal directly with immigration.
DHS has been shut down for more than a month.
The DeLauro bill to fund the department, minus Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Customs and Border Patrol (CBP), was introduced five weeks ago.
That means it’s eligible for a discharge petition, which House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY-8) launched on Wednesday. If enough members of the House sign the petition, Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) has to bring it to the floor for a vote.
“House Democrats are taking matters into our own hands, and I call on my Republican colleagues in the rank and file who know what their leadership is doing and they know it is wrong: please join us in this effort,” DeLauro said.
Democrats have said they won’t fully fund the department without meaningful reform to ICE, including banning agents from wearing masks and ending roving patrols.
ICE remains funded during the shutdown, thanks to a contingency fund included in the One Big Beautiful Bill in 2025.
The majority of DHS staff, including air traffic controllers and TSA agents, are considered essential. So far, they’ve missed one paycheck but are still required to report to work.
Republicans have said they want to fund the entire department at once.
