U.S. Senate Pushes Bill To End Government Shutdown

The U.S. Senate late Sunday took a step toward ending the 40-day federal government shutdown that has disrupted public services, grounded thousands of workers, and strained key sectors from food aid to air travel.

In a procedural vote, senators advanced a House-passed bill that will be amended to fund government operations through January 30 while including a package of three full-year appropriations bills.

The bill passed with 60 votes in favour and 40 against, just enough support to end debate and allow the Senate to move it forward.

If the Senate approves the amended version this week, it will return to the House of Representatives for final passage before heading to President Donald Trump for his signature.

Under the emerging deal, Republicans agreed to hold a December vote on extending Affordable Care Act (ACA) subsidies that help low-income Americans pay for private health insurance.

The subsidies are set to expire at the end of the year, and Democrats had made their renewal a central demand in the funding negotiations.

“It looks like we’re getting very close to the shutdown ending,” Trump told reporters at the White House ahead of Sunday’s vote.

The proposal would also protect federal employees from being laid off until January 30, a key victory for public sector unions that guarantees back pay for all affected workers, including members of the military, border agents, and air-traffic controllers.

At the start of Trump’s second term, the federal government employed about 2.2 million civilians. Roughly 300,000 are expected to leave by year’s end as part of Trump’s downsizing initiative.

Senate Majority Leader John Thune said after the vote that Republicans were optimistic about swift passage.

“It was a good vote tonight. Hopefully, we’ll get an opportunity tomorrow to set up the next votes,” he told reporters.

The deal was reportedly brokered by Democratic Senators Maggie Hassan and Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire, and Independent Senator Angus King of Maine.

“For over a month, I’ve made clear that my priorities are to both reopen government and extend the ACA enhanced premium tax credits. This is our best path toward accomplishing both,” Shaheen said in a post on X.

However, not all Democrats were pleased.

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer opposed the measure, while Representative Ro Khanna criticised his leadership, saying, “If you can’t lead the fight to stop healthcare premiums from skyrocketing for Americans, what will you fight for?”

The shutdown, now the longest in U.S. history, has slowed food assistance programmes, led to staff cuts in some sectors and threatened air travel, with various flights cut across the U.S. since Friday.