Partial Federal Government Shutdown Begins

February 2, 2026 / 12 min read

Following last fall’s government shutdown (the longest in U.S. history), the federal government has partially shut down again as of January 31^st at 12:01 a.m. after Congress was unable to pass the required funding provisions to keep the government open before midnight on January 30^th. As explained more fully below, the Senate passed a modified version of a House approved spending package in the evening of January 30^th which now requires House approval. However, the House was out on recess on January 30^th and, thus, unavailable to vote on the Senate’s bill in time to avert a partial shutdown. The House is expected to consider the Senate’s bill when it returns from recess on Monday, February 2^nd.

Partial Govt Shut Down 2.2.26 GettyImages-171585034

Summary

On January 22, 2026, the U.S. House of Representatives passed six appropriation bills to keep the government funded and open, sent them to the Senate as single package for the Senate’s approval, and then left town on recess. In general, it was expected that the Senate would pass the House’s spending package and that President Trump would then sign the bill into law thereby averting a partial shutdown prior to the shutdown deadline.

However, the death of Alex Pretti involving federal agents on January 24, 2026, as part of the on-going Minnesota immigration protests, upended this expected course of events. Following this event, Senate Democrats demanded that funding for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) (one of the appropriations in the House bill) be stripped from the House’s package and that any additional DHS funding contain several reform measures governing the conduct of DHS agents and immigration enforcement going forward. On January 29, 2026, a Senate “test” vote on the House bill failed 45-55.

Ultimately, the White House and Senate Democrats reached a deal for funding of five of the appropriation bills in the House spending package, while only temporarily funding the DHS for two weeks to allow lawmakers to consider the Democratic reform proposals regarding DHS’s immigration enforcement activity. After some initial delay, the Senate passed this modified spending package, 71-29, on the evening of January 30^th. Given the Senate’s modifications, the spending measure needs House approval. However, since the House was on recess and out of town on January 30^th it was unable to take up the measure by the shutdown deadline - thereby causing the government to partially shutdown as of January 31^st at 12:01 a.m.

Thus, all eyes are now on the House which is expected to take up the Senate’s passed spending measure when it returns from recess on February 2^nd. It is unknown if the lower chamber will move quickly to pass the Senate bill, or if the matter could be delayed (and the shutdown protracted) over issues regarding the DHS proposals.

Of likely interest to many readers of our blog, this shutdown is not expected to cause an interruption in a beneficiary’s Medicare, Medicaid, or social security benefits. Likewise, per Verisk’s recent outreach to the Commercial Repayment Center (CRC) and the Benefits Coordination and Recovery Center (BCRC) we have confirmed that this shutdown is not expected to impact their CMS MSP contractor operations. In addition, like prior shutdowns, we also do not anticipate that this latest shutdown will impact the Workers’ Compensation Review Center’s (WCRC’s) activities regarding WCMSAs. If any of this should change for whatever unexpected reasons, we will provide updates as necessary.

For those interested in a deeper dive of the latest shutdown saga, and its on-going political roll-a-coaster, the following general overview is presented:

Setting the stage - government shutdown (fall 2025)

To a certain degree, the current shutdown has its origins from how last fall’s government shutdown was ultimately resolved. As many recall, last fall’s shutdown was the longest government shutdown in history, lasting some 43 days from October 1, 2025 through November 12, 2025. Briefly, at the crux of that shutdown was a dispute, in main part, over funding Affordable Care Act (ACA) subsidies which were set to expire at the end of 2025.^[1]

Last fall’s shutdown finally ended when President Trump, in the late evening of November 12, 2025, signed a stop-gap government funding bill.^[2]Very generally, this funding measure contained, in main part, three full-year appropriations bills that funded certain government departments like Agriculture, the Federal Drug Administration (FDA), and Veterans Administration (VA), through the end of the fiscal year in fall 2026, as well as a continuing resolution to fund the rest of the government at existing spending levels through January 30, 2026.^[3]

Thus, coming out of last fall’s shutdown, all eyes turned to January 30^th which, as noted above, is when the continuing resolution passed in November would expire. Headed toward this deadline, Congress passed six of 12 funding measures leaving only six remaining finding bills to be passed to avert another shutdown by midnight on January 30^th.^[4] This all sets up where we sit currently as follows:

House approves spending package, sends it to the Senate, and then goes on recess

On January 22, 2026, the United States House of Representatives passed a roughly $1.25 trillion spending package on a 220-207 vote, with seven Democrats joining almost all Republicans to support the measure.^[5]Thomas Massie (R-Ky) was the sole GOP dissenter.^[6]Very generally, the House passed six spending bills that would fund the departments of Defense, Homeland Security, Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, Health and Human Services, Labor, Education, Treasury, State and other related agencies.^[7]The House bundled these bills together into a single package and sent the measure to the United States Senate for approval.^[8]The House then went on recess and was not scheduled to return to Washington until Monday, February 2, 2026.^[9]

Senate rejects the House’s spending package

The House bill needed 60 votes in Senate to pass which proved unattainable. On January 29, 2026, a test vote failed 45-55 with fifty-five senators, including all Democrats and seven Republicans, voting against advancing the funding package.^[10]

From the Democratic side, the House bill failed to garner support, in main part, due to concerns stemming from the death of Alexi Pretti involving federal agents on January 24, 2026 (which occurred 2 days after the House passed its spending package) during the Minnesota immigration protests.^[11] Following this event, several Democrats signaled that they would not support funding for the Department of Homeland Security as contained in the House bill without additional oversight provisions^[12] or removal of DHS funding altogether.^[13]As part of the House passed $1.2 trillion spending package, it included $64.4 billion for DHS and $10 billion for ICE.^[14]In terms of oversight, the Democrats proposals included ending roving ICE patrols, tightening rules governing the use of warrants, establishing a universal code of conduct governing federal law enforcement officers’ use of force, and prohibiting federal officers from wearing masks and require them to wear body cameras and proper identification.^[15]

From the Republican side, one source reported that the GOP votes against the House bill stemmed from concerns from conservatives about what they viewed as wasteful spending,^[16]while another source also noted that several GOP Senators had also expressed concerns about DHS activity following the death of Alex Pretti, with some calling for an independent investigation.^[17]

Senate passes modified spending package on Friday evening and sends the measure back to the House (which was out on recess) – partial government shutdown results

After rejecting the House bill, the Senate scrambled to coordinate an alternative approach to fund the government and avert a shutdown. Ultimately, the evening hours of Friday January 30th, the Senate approved an alternative funding agreement which, notably, was backed by President Trump and Senate Minority Leader, Chuck Schumer (D-NY).^[18] This bill passed 71-29, with only five GOP Senators voting against the measure.^[19]

The spending bill passed by the Senate differs from the package passed by the House. Specifically, the Senate measure approves five of the six appropriations bills contained in the House’s package, providing funding for the departments of Defense; Labor, Health and Human Services, Education; Transportation, Housing and Urban Development; State; and Financial services and general government functions through the end of September 2026.^[20] However, the Senate’s package only temporarily funds the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) for two weeks to allow lawmakers to consider the reform proposals advanced by Democrats related to the administration’s immigration enforcement activities as discussed above.^[21]

Given the Senate’s modifications, the spending measure needs House approval. However, since the House was on recess and out of town on January 30^th it was unable to take up the measure in time by 11:59 p.m. on January 30^th to potentially avert a shutdown - thereby causing the government to partially shut down as of January 31^st at 12:01 a.m.^[22]

What happens next?

As noted, the Senate’s bill must now be approved by the House, which is on recess until Monday, February 2^nd. One source notes that if the House acts quickly upon returning Monday -- and assuming the House were to pass the Senate’s spending package as is -- the effects of a shutdown could be extremely limited.^[23]However, as of the time this article was drafted, the fate of the Senate bill in the House remained somewhat uncertain, as over the weekend there were reports that the package could face some obstacles in the House.^[24]

For example, one source notes that the conservative House Freedom Caucus voiced opposition to the Senate’s plan last week and that the Senate’s bill will first need to advance through the Rules Committee, where Republican defections could prevent the package from getting to the floor.^[25] Further, there may be GOP opposition to the immigration reform ideas proposed by the Democrats.^[26]From the Democratic side, on Saturday, House minority leader, Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) indicated that Democrats will not join Republicans in expediting the passage of the Senate-passed funding package to ensure the DHS reform proposals are addressed, which could mean that the partial shutdown could last longer than anticipated. ^[27]

While a detailed review of House procedural rules and practices regarding how and when the House will vote on the Senate bill is outside this article’s scope, one source over the weekend reported there are several procedural steps that must occur before the House can vote on final passage, and it is unclear if House Speaker, Mike Johnson (R-LA) has the necessary GOP support to advance the package to the floor given the slim GOP majority.^[28] On this point, this source reports that it was initially expected that Speaker Johnson would attempt to take up the measure on the House floor on Monday under suspension of House rules -- requiring a two-thirds majority for passage.^[29]However, this source noted that Speaker Johnson will now have to first pass the package through the House Rules Committee before it can be taken to the floor for a vote so Republicans can attempt to pass the package with a simple majority.^[30]

Further, as of Saturday, this source noted that House markup on the Senate-passed funding package is set to occur on Monday at 4 p.m. (which would be the first of many steps before the House would be ready for a full vote on the Senate’s funding measure), while an unnamed GOP representative in House leadership reportedly told this source that a final vote on the funding package to end the partial shutdown would likely occur sometime on Tuesday.^[31]Adding to the above, on Sunday, one source noted that Speaker Johnson commented that it would be a few days before a funding package came before the House for a vote.^[32]Meanwhile, while on a Sunday talk program, the Speaker noted that he was confident that Congress could end the partial shutdown on Tuesday indicating that he has the Republican votes to end the partial shutdown.^[33]When the dust settles, as the reader has likely already discerned, all of this remains in a very fluid state, and we simply need to closely monitor the House’s activity starting on Monday to see how it all unfolds.

Potential Impact

The partial shutdown affects several large governmental agencies including the Departments of Defense, Education, Financial Services, Health and Human Services, Homeland Security, Housing and Urban Development, Labor, Transportation as well as related agencies and programs.^[34]If the shutdown is not resolved quickly, we will then need to start monitoring how any extended shutdown may end up impacting governmental functions and services, and how that may affect the daily lives of the general populace. While a deep dive into the potential impacts is outside the scope of this article (and let’s hope we do not even need to go down this path again), the impact of this shutdown, should it be protracted, would reportedly be vastly different from last fall’s recording breaker in part since Congress has already passed half this year’s funding bills, ensuring that several important federal agencies and programs continue to operate through September.^[35]

Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security benefits – no anticipated impact

As with prior shutdowns, there is no expected impact on Medicare, Medicaid, or Social Security benefits as these programs are considered “mandatory spending” and are not funded through annual appropriations.^[36] However, as has occurred in past shutdowns (typically the longer the shutdown continued) there could be disruptions regarding certain services, such as benefit verifications or the issuance of new Social Security cards and replacement Medicare cards.^[37]

Medicare secondary payer – no anticipated impact

Also, as with prior shutdowns, per Verisk’s recent outreach to the Commercial Repayment Center (CRC) and the Benefits Coordination and Recovery Center (BCRC) we have confirmed that this shutdown is not expected to impact their CMS MSP contractor operations. In addition, like prior shutdowns, we also do not anticipate that this latest shutdown will impact the Workers’ Compensation Review Center’s (WCRC’s) activities regarding WCMSAs. If any of this should change for whatever unexpected reasons, we will provide updates as necessary.

Questions?

Please do not hesitate to contact the author if you have any questions. In the interim, the Verisk policy team will continue to monitor events in this area and provide updates if warranted.

[1] Pecorin, A. (2025, November 9). Enough Senate Democrats vote with Republicans to break government shutdown impasse. ABC News. https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/democrats-expected-vote-republicans-end-shutdown-sources/story?id=127361326 and Becket, S. and Hubbard, K. (2025, November 11). Here's what's in the Senate deal that would end the government shutdown. CBS News. https://www.cbsnews.com/news/government-shutdown-senate-deal/?intcid=CNR-01-0623

[2] Yilek, C., Watson, K. and Hubbard, K. (2025, November 12). Government shutdown ends as Trump signs funding bill. CBS News. https://www.cbsnews.com/live-updates/government-shutdown-latest-house-vote-senate-deal-trump/

[3] Thorp, F. (2025, November 9). Senators reach tentative deal to end the government shutdown. NBC News. https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/senators-reach-tentative-deal-to-end-the-government-shutdown/ar-AA1Q7fKr?ocid=BingNewsSerp

[4] Hubbard, K. (2026, January 28). Senate Democrats release demands as clock ticks toward partial government shutdown. CBS News. https://www.cbsnews.com/news/senate-democrats-release-demands-as-clock-ticks-toward-partial-government-shutdown/ See also, Government Shutdowns Q&A: Everything You Should Know. Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget. https://www.crfb.org/papers/government-shutdowns-qa-everything-you-should-know#whatisashutdown

[5] Fulton, J. and Folley, A. (2026, January 22). Final Fiscal 2026 spending bills pass House; Senate up next. Roll Call. https://rollcall.com/2026/01/22/final-fiscal-2026-spending-bills-pass-house-senate-up-next/

[6] Id.

[7] Kochi, S. (2026, January 26). This week on the Hill: Minneapolis shooting upends race to avert shutdown. The Hill. https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/this-week-on-the-hill-minneapolis-shooting-upends-race-to-avert-shutdown/ar-AA1UZItc?ocid=BingNewsVerp

[8] Lesniewski, N. (2026, January 26). This week: Senate returns, staring at possible partial government shutdown. Roll Call. https://rollcall.com/2026/01/26/this-week-senate-returns-staring-at-possible-partial-government-shutdown/

[9] Plummer, K. (2026, January 28). US Shutdown Latest as Democrats Warn Over ICE Funds. Newsweek. https://www.newsweek.com/us-government-shutdown-ice-funds-dhs-11429136

[10] Schermele, Z. and Palmer, K. (2026, January 29). Shutdown inches closer as Senate vote fails. Live updates, USA Today. https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2026/01/29/government-shutdown-2026-updates/88411915007/

[11] Shermele, Z. (2026, January 28). Is a government shutdown unstoppable after Alex Pretti's killing? USA Today. https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/another-government-shutdown-ice-debate-jeopardizes-spending-deal/ar-AA1V7sWm?ocid=BingNewsSerp

[12] Sullivan, A. (2026, January 27). Explainer: Why would the US government shut down? Reuters. https://www.reuters.com/world/us/why-would-us-government-shut-down-2026-01-27/

[13] Plummer, K. (2026, January 28). US Shutdown Latest as Democrats Warn Over ICE Funds. Newsweek. https://www.newsweek.com/us-government-shutdown-ice-funds-dhs-11429136

[14] Shermele, Z. (2026, January 28). Is a government shutdown unstoppable after Alex Pretti's killing? USA Today. https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2026/01/27/government-shutdown-ice-minnesota/88379885007/

[15] Bolton, A. (2026, January 28). Sen. Chuck Schumer lays out immigration enforcement demands to avert shutdown. The Hill. https://thehill.com/homenews/senate/5711343-democrats-schumer-immigration-demands-dhs-funding/

[16] Schermele, Z. and Palmer, K. (2026, January 29). Shutdown inches closer as Senate vote fails. Live updates, USA Today. https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2026/01/29/government-shutdown-2026-updates/88411915007/

[17] On this point, an article from NPR noted the following regarding Republican concerns following the incident involving Alex Pretti:

In an era when congressional Republicans rarely criticize the Trump administration, the killing of 37-year-old Alex Pretti in Minneapolis sparked unease from unexpected corners of the caucus. ‘Initial rushes to judgment did not meet the standard that Americans should expect from their government officials,’ Sen. Ted Budd, R-N.C., wrote on social media, referring to remarks by Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and others who had swiftly labeled Pretti a ‘domestic terrorist.’ ‘Enforcing our immigration laws makes our streets safer. It also protects our national security,’ Sen. Pete Ricketts, R-Neb., wrote in a statement the day after the shooting. ‘But we must also maintain our core values as a nation, including the right to protest and assemble.’ Several Republicans called for hearings and an independent investigation; DHS leaders are expected to testify in back-to-back oversight hearings next month and Noem is now due to testify in March. Sens. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, and Thom Tillis, R-N.C., more frequent Trump critics, have called for her resignation. Tillis told reporters that the images coming out of Minneapolis were souring the public on the Trump administration's handling of immigration more broadly. ‘It is regrettable that the issue that Republicans always lead on, we're losing on,’ Tillis told NPR. Bustillo, X. and Gringlas, S. (2026, January 30, 2026). Senate passes funding deal, as lawmakers hope for only a short-term partial shutdown. NPR. https://www.npr.org/2026/01/29/nx-s1-5693050/trump-minneapolis-government-shutdown-funding-immigration-republicans

[18] Schapitl, L. (2026, January 31, 2026). What to know about the partial government shutdown. NPR. https://www.npr.org/2026/01/31/nx-s1-5694716/partial-government-shutdown

[19] The five Republican Senators who voted against the bill are: Sens. Rand Paul (R-KY), Ted Cruz (R-TX), Mike Lee (R-UT), Ron Johnson (R-WI) and Rick Scott (R-FL). Parkinson, J., O’Brien, J., Jones II, A, Pecorin, A, and Ibssa, L. (2026, January 31). Jeffries says Dems won't help fast-track Senate-passed funding measure, with shutdown expected to drag on longer than anticipated. ABC News. https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/graham-blockade-stalls-government-funding-deal-hours-shutdown/story?id=129712452

On another note, while the White House and Senator Schumer struck the deal that the Senate ultimately passed on Friday evening, of note, an actual vote on the bill was on hold for some time by Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) who had several concerns regarding the agreed to compromise. In this regard, earlier in the day on Friday Senator Graham outlined several demands for him to “lift” his hold to allow a vote. His demands included a promise of a vote at a later date on his bill to end sanctuary cities and a vote related to controversial Arctic Frost provisions, which allow members of Congress to sue the government if federal investigators gain access to their phone records without their knowledge. Those provisions were stripped out of the funding package initially passed by the House. Senator Graham ultimately lifted his hold after securing a commitment from Senate Majority Leader John Thune for a vote on banning sanctuary cities in the coming weeks. Id.

[20] Schapitl, L. (2026, January 31, 2026). What to know about the partial government shutdown. NPR. https://www.npr.org/2026/01/31/nx-s1-5694716/partial-government-shutdown

[21] Bustillo, X. and Gringlas, S. (2026, January 30, 2026). Senate passes funding deal, as lawmakers hope for only a short-term partial shutdown. NPR. https://www.npr.org/2026/01/29/nx-s1-5693050/trump-minneapolis-government-shutdown-funding-immigration-republicans and Schapitl, L. (2026, January 31, 2026). What to know about the partial government shutdown. NPR. https://www.npr.org/2026/01/31/nx-s1-5694716/partial-government-shutdown

[22] Schapitl, L. (2026, January 31, 2026). What to know about the partial government shutdown. NPR. https://www.npr.org/2026/01/31/nx-s1-5694716/partial-government-shutdown

[23] Id.

[24] Id.

[25] Id.

[26] Id.

[27] Parkinson, J., O’Brien, J., Jones II, A, Pecorin, A, and Ibssa, L. (2026, January 31). Jeffries says Dems won't help fast-track Senate-passed funding measure, with shutdown expected to drag on longer than anticipated. ABC News. https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/graham-blockade-stalls-government-funding-deal-hours-shutdown/story?id=129712452

On this point, this source notes as follows:

Explaining his position, Jeffries said in the MSNOW interview: ‘We need a full and complete debate, and what I've made clear to House Republicans is that they cannot simply move forward with legislation taking a 'my way or the highway' approach in the absence of House Democrats convening, which we're going to do tomorrow, and having a discussion about the appropriate way forward.’ Jeffries said the reason for this decision is because there has not been an agreement on the demands from Democrats for reforms at DHS. ‘We need a clear path forward, and we haven't had that discussion with the White House or anyone within the administration, and the things that we've talked about needing to occur, and we understand that we're going to have to build this into law, and that's what's contemplated,’ he said. ‘We need ICE and DHS agencies to conduct themselves like every other law enforcement agency in the country. And what we're saying is that if we're contemplating a two week freeze in order to get us to a place where we can see dramatic change, we want to understand that there's an ironclad path forward to get those things done,’ he later added. Id.

[28] Parkinson, J., O’Brien, J., Jones II, A, Pecorin, A, and Ibssa, L. (2026, January 31). Jeffries says Dems won't help fast-track Senate-passed funding measure, with shutdown expected to drag on longer than anticipated. ABC News. https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/graham-blockade-stalls-government-funding-deal-hours-shutdown/story?id=129712452

[29] Id.

[30] Id.

[31] Id.

[32] Mascaro, L. (2026, February 1). Johnson says no quick House vote to end partial shutdown and blames Democrats for their ICE demands. AP. https://apnews.com/article/shutdown-ice-trump-democrats-demands-johnson-funding-d90a24827e48c18fc1c14c76adfecda6

[33] Wendler, J. (2026, February 1). Mike Johnson says House can end government shutdown 'by Tuesday.' Politico. https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/mike-johnson-says-house-can-end-government-shutdown-by-tuesday/ar-AA1Vrttf?ocid=BingNewsSerp and Gardner, T. (2026, February 1). US House Speaker Johnson says he has votes to end partial shutdown by Tuesday. Reuters. https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/us-house-speaker-johnson-says-he-has-votes-to-end-partial-shutdown-by-tuesday/ar-AA1Vr8OD?ocid=BingNewsSerp

[34] Plummer, K. (2026, February 2). When Will Partial Government Shutdown End? Latest Updates, Odds. https://www.newsweek.com/partial-government-shutdown-end-odds-11451278

[35] Kinnard, M. and Freking, K. (2026, February 1, 2026). Government shutdown 2026: Which agencies are affected and what remains open. Penn. Live, Patriot News. https://www.pennlive.com/politics/2026/02/government-shutdown-2026-which-agencies-are-affected-and-what-remains-open.html

[36] Lee, C. (2026, January 30). If the government shuts down, how could you be impacted?. Time. https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/if-the-government-shuts-down-how-could-you-be-impacted/ar-AA1Vh0WM?ocid=BingNewsSerp

[37] Lee, C. (2026, January 30). If the government shuts down, how could you be impacted?. Time. https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/if-the-government-shuts-down-how-could-you-be-impacted/ar-AA1Vh0WM?ocid=BingNewsSerp See also, Government Shutdowns Q&A: Everything You Should Know. Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget. https://www.crfb.org/papers/government-shutdowns-qa-everything-you-should-know#whatisashutdown