The United States has ended its longest-ever government shutdown after Congress approved an emergency spending bill late Wednesday that paved the way for federal agencies to slowly restart after 43 days of paralysis.
The House voted 222–209 to pass the stopgap funding measure, sending it to President Donald Trump, who signed it at 10:24 p.m. ET from the Oval Office. The move reopens the government through January 30, although another budget showdown looms just weeks away.
A Chaotic Shutdown Finally Ends
The six-week standoff between President Trump and congressional Democrats crippled basic government functions, halted economic data releases, disrupted flights, and delayed food assistance for millions of low-income Americans.
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said that the aviation system could take up to a week to stabilize. There have been thousands of cancellations in recent days, with further delays likely as the FAA rebuilds staffing and restores operations.
While the shutdown appeared to be over, major social programs – including SNAP food benefits and preschool services – would take days to come back online. States said they need time to update beneficiary records and reload debit cards after weeks of legal battles over shutdown funding authority.
Economic Damage Still Coming Into Focus
The Congressional Budget Office estimated that a six-week shutdown would cut 1.5 percentage points from this quarter’s U.S. GDP. Some of the lost activity will be regained, but the CBO estimates $11 billion in permanent economic damage.
Delta Air Lines said cancellations related to air-traffic disruptions would reduce quarterly earnings. Financial markets also were left in the dark as federal statistical agencies halted major reports, including jobs and inflation data, for October.
The Bureau of Labor Statistics is working on a revised release schedule for late indicators.
A Divided Congress Ends the Standoff
The shutdown concluded in familiar fashion: the party using the shutdown as leverage ultimately backed down under public pressure.
Eight Senate Democrats defected from their party to join Republicans in advancing the bill, which reopened the government in exchange for a future Senate vote on Affordable Care Act premium subsidies that expire December 31. But House Speaker Mike Johnson would not commit to a vote in the House, meaning the health-care fight was far from over.
The House bill passed with the support of six moderate Democrats, while two Republicans opposed it.
The Republicans and Democrats clashed sharply during debate on the House floor. “The whole exercise was pointless,” Speaker Johnson said. Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries countered that Democrats would continue pushing to extend ACA tax credits, framing the issue as a key 2026 midterm battleground.
Federal Workers Head Back to Work — Slowly
Hundreds of thousands of federal employees will return to the job in the coming days. All will receive back pay.
The national parks, federal agencies, and museums will reopen gradually as the departments review safety, restore systems, and call back workers.
Food stamp recipients will experience delays as states rebuild the program files. And with only two major EBT card vendors, bottlenecks are anticipated as every state rushes to reload benefits.
Lingering Political Fallout
The bill contained the surprising inclusion of a provision that would permit select GOP senators to sue the Biden administration over the secretive subpoenaing of their phone records linked to investigations regarding the riot on Jan. 6. Speaker Johnson denounced the language and promised a vote in the House to rescind it next week.
At the same time, Democrats disclosed never-before-seen emails connected to the late Jeffrey Epstein, further inflaming partisan tensions even as the shutdown wound down.
The shutdown also reshaped the balance of power in Congress. After a long delay, Rep. Adelita Grijalva was sworn in, boosting Democrats’ numbers and potentially affecting future oversight votes — including efforts to release more Epstein-related documents.
Another Deadline Looms
In fact, the new funding bill extends government operations only until January 30, setting up a fresh confrontation early next year. But several agencies – including the Agriculture Department, Veterans Affairs, FDA, military construction and Congress itself – funded through September 30, reducing the risk of immediate disruption.
Political divisions, however, remain deep. Many progressive groups attacked Democrats who broke ranks and said the shutdown ended without securing key health-care protections. Moderate Democrats countered that the stalemate had already caused unacceptable harm to millions of Americans.
Why It Matters
The stopgap ending the shutdown provides temporary respite, but the struggle over ACA subsidies, federal spending priorities, and control of Congress will continue well into 2024 and set the stage for the 2026 midterm elections. Another budget deadline looms only weeks from now. A fragile compromise in Washington may face one more test pretty soon.
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