Congress Reaches Deal on ICE Funding With Spending Package
George Caldwell /
Bipartisan funding negotiators in Congress say they have a deal on a trillion-dollar package to cover major priorities such as deportations, health, transportation, and the military.
The deal between Republican and Democrat appropriators comes after speculation about whether Democrats would allow funding for the Department of Homeland Security to advance.
The $1.2 trillion funding deal combines four spending bills into one product of almost 800 pages and will come to a vote on the House floor this week.
The package’s passage would be the final step in passing all 12 standard appropriations bills out of the House for 2026.
Notably, Republicans have managed to get Democrat buy-in for the homeland security bill, which covers immigration and border enforcement funding.
Top Democrat House appropriator Rep. Rosa DeLauro of Connecticut said of the deal that she understands “many of [her] Democratic colleagues may be dissatisfied with any bill that funds [Immigration and Customs Enforcement].”
She added, “I share their frustration with the out-of-control agency. I encourage my colleagues to review the bill and determine what is best for their constituents and communities.”
Democrats had stressed their desire for policy riders exercising congressional control over Immigration Customs Enforcement officers’ operations in the wake of Renee Good’s death in an ICE-involved shooting in Minnesota.
Sen. Patty Murray of Washington, the top Democrat appropriator in the Senate, also signaled her support for the package Tuesday—a promising sign for efforts to keep the government open after Jan 30.
“ICE must be reined in, and unfortunately, neither a [continuing resolution] nor a shutdown would do anything to restrain it, because, thanks to Republicans, ICE is now sitting on a massive slush fund it can tap whether or not we pass a funding bill,” Murray said in a statement that appeared to anticipate backlash from the Democrat base to the deal.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., has previously acknowledged the difficulty of attracting Democrat support for the homeland security bill, as well as the possibility of having to pass a clean funding extension for homeland security if a deal fell through.
In a statement, Murray additionally urged fellow Democrats to “take [their] fight to the ballot box” to counter ICE’s activities.
The homeland security bill “provides a total discretionary allocation of $64.4 billion,” per a Republican appropriations release. This includes immigration enforcement-specific funding, such as $10 billion for ICE.
However, Democrats are boasting of what they say are wins in their effort to rein in ICE, with a Murray press release highlighting that the bill’s text prevents “any growth to ICE’s annual budget” and “rejects President [Donald] Trump’s request for a $840 million increase in funding for ICE.”
Beyond homeland security, the bill funds three other areas: defense; labor, health, and education; and transportation and housing.
The defense bill would allocate almost $840 billion, with Republican appropriators highlighting funding for new ships, as well as pay raises for troops and the elimination of diversity programs.
The labor, health, and education bill provides $221 billion, and Republican appropriators say it assists “Trump’s efforts to safeguard taxpayer dollars, eliminate out-of-touch progressive policies, and end the weaponization of government.”
The Republicans on the appropriations committee also say in a press release that the $100 billion transportation and housing bill “prioritizes transportation safety … while maintaining essential housing assistance for our nation’s most vulnerable.”