Deadline looming for DHS reforms
White House, Congress continue negotiations
By: Zachary Schermele
USA Today
WASHINGTON - Congress and the White House are locked in negotiations over potential reforms to the Department of Homeland Security as a deadline to shut down the agency approaches.
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Lawmakers have until the end of the February 13, [2026] to reach an agreement or risk jeopardizing funding for the Transpiration Security Administration and U.S. coast Guard, among other divisions of the 9/11-era Cabinet agency that could be impacted by yet another lapse in appropriations.
..... Unlike during the record-breaking government shutdown in the fall, [2025] trump administration officials have been engaged in the last few weeks in serious talks with lawmakers on Capitol Hill. the ongoing discussion reflect a bipartisan unease over the tastes of federal agents in President Trump's nationwide immigration enforcement surge, especially after Alex Pretti's killing by federal officers in Minnesota in January. [2026]
..... Last week, [02/03/2026] House and Senate Democrats released a list of 10 demands to curb DHS, which oversees Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Customs and Border Protection. those wishes include a ban on mask-wearing for federal agents, stricter use-of-force standards and prohibiting immigration enforcement operation in "sensitive locations" such as schools and churches.
..... Since them Democrats have been trying to broker a deal with their GOP counterparts and the White House, which has offered a counterproposal, according to an administration official.
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The contours of the White House's offer weren't immediately widely known among lawmakers. Senate Tim Kaine, D-Virginia, told reporters February 9 [2026] he was aware of the counterproposal but hadn't seen the details. Senator Jeanne Shaheen, D-New Hampshire, said it wasn't clear to her what kind of progress had been made in recent days among the negotiators in her party.
..... "Hopefully, people are working to get something done," she said.
..... Even if the February 13 [2026] deadline passes, the consequences will be limited: The rest of the government has already been funded through the rest of the fiscal year. [2026] Even ICE, the division of DHS whose tactics have been at the center of the reform talks, would continue operating since it received $75 billion in funding over the next several years in President Trump's signature legislation known as the One Big Beautiful Bill Act.
..... Asked February 9 [2026] whether such a bill could feasibly gain traction in the next few days, Senator Susan Collins, R-Maine, chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, said she wasn't sure.
..... Contributing: Josey Garrison, USA Today