The White House and congressional leaders announced an agreement Friday to end a record federal government shutdown that began Dec. 22 and has lasted more than a month.
The Senate approved by voice vote the temporary funding bill, and the House was expected to follow by the end of the day.
The deal includes creation of a special congressional conference committee to work on a legislative package for border security.
It's not clear when federal agencies affected by the partial shutdown will be back to full strength. As reported by Pensions & Investments, private equity deals and initial public offerings have been slowed since the shutdown began. The Securities and Exchange Commission also stopped reviewing applications for registered investment advisers.
President Donald Trump said in brief remarks from the White House Rose Garden that if they were not able to reach a "fair deal" by Feb. 15 that includes funding for a border wall, there could be another government shutdown or he could declare a national emergency, enabling him to bypass Congress by having the military build the wall.
More than 800,000 federal workers affected by the 35-day shutdown have gone unpaid during that period. American Federation of Government Employees National President J. David Cox Sr., whose union represents 700,000 federal workers, said he would not celebrate "a temporary reprieve to a politically motivated crisis." He called on Congress to pass full-year appropriations for all government agencies and to prevent future shutdowns.
