Congress Votes to End Government Shutdown

The federal government will be back in business after Congress voted Monday to end a three-day shutdown.

A short-term spending bill passed by a vote of 81-18 in the U.S. Senate after lawmakers agreed to eventually allow a vote on protecting “Dreamers” from deportation

The bill to fund the government through Feb. 8 received quick approval in the U.S. House of Representatives by a vote of 266-150 and sent to President Trump for his signature. The measure also provides money for the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) for six years.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., pledged to take up immigration legislation — including a permanent fix for the controversial DACA, or Dreamers, program — in the next three weeks. The Trump administration is phasing out DACA, putting its roughly 700,000 recipients at risk of deportation.

The funding legislation means federal agencies will no longer be forced to shut their doors or furlough nonessential workers. Also, government benefits will resume.

U.S. government funding lapsed at the end of Friday, but there was never a total shutdown of government services.

While most federal buildings remained closed Monday, airports, postal service, national security and law enforcement operations continued. Veteran Affairs hospitals and federal courts remained open.

Other “essential” federal workers were still on the job, including FBI agents, Transportation Security Administration screeners at airports and the Coast Guard.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which is dealing with the flu epidemic, and the Internal Revenue Service, which is dealing with the new tax law, also continued working.

Members of the military continued working during the shutdown without pay. A measure attached to the spending bill ensures federal workers will get back pay they would have lost during the shutdown.