Homeland Security shutdown: What's it all about?
Why might the Department of Homeland Security shut down?
The Senate is locked in a stalemate over the Department of Homeland Security funding bill because of immigration amendments that the House attached to the bill last month. If the bill doesn't pass the Senate, the Department of Homeland Security will run out of money on Friday.
What happens if Congress doesn't agree by the Friday deadline?
About 30,000 DHS employees — mostly office workers — will be furloughed. More than 80% of the department's 240,000 employees will still go to work because their jobs are deemed essential to the nation's safety. Those workers, however, will not get paid.
Which employees are considered 'essential'?
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Many who work at Customs and Border Protection, the Transportation Security Administration, the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the Secret Service and the Coast Guard are considered essential for national security. They patrol the borders, check luggage for weapons at airports, respond to natural disasters or guard the president.
Will those 'essential' employees get paid back?
Congress would have to decide whether Homeland Security employees would get retroactive pay after any shutdown. Federal workers received back pay after the 2013 government shutdown, but federal contractors did not.
What's the fight about?
Immigration amendments Republicans added to the DHS funding bill would bar any federal funds from being used to carry out Obama's executive orders to protect about 4 million undocumented immigrants from deportation and allow them to work in the USA. The amendments also would end a current Obama administration program — Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) — that gives temporary legal status and work permits to undocumented immigrants who came to the U.S. as children.
Who's on which side?
Congressional Republicans added the immigration amendments to the funding bill. Senate Democrats, independents and Republican Sen. Dean Heller of Nevada united on three separate votes to block the House-passed bill from advancing in the Senate because they objected to the immigration provisions.
Are other government departments at risk of shutting down if this bill doesn't pass?
No, this bill is specifically for funding the Department of Homeland Security.
Listen to Cup of Politics. Paul Singer interviews Erin Kelly about the potential DHS shutdown in the audio player below:
Contributing: Emily Brown, USA TODAY