US House advances $70 billion immigration enforcement bill

WASHINGTON - The U.S. Congress moved one step closer on Tuesday to ending a stalemate over funding for immigration enforcement, as Republicans in the House of Representatives voted along party lines to open debate on a $70 billion bill.

The House was expected to vote on passing the measure later on Tuesday, which would send the legislation to the White House for President Donald Trump's signature. The Senate passed the bill early Friday morning, also along party lines.

The bill would fund U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Border Patrol for the next three years, putting it beyond the reach of partisan disagreements in Congress.

Democrats refused to back funding for immigration enforcement after agents killed two U.S. citizens in Minneapolis in January. That disrupted funding for the Department of Homeland Security, leading to lengthy airport-security lines, until lawmakers agreed in April to fund portions of the sprawling department not involved in Trump's immigration crackdown.

(Reporting by Nolan D. McCaskill and David Morgan; Editing by Mark Porter and Alistair Bell)

Copyright Reuters or USA Today Network via Reuters Connect.

This story was originally published June 9, 2026 at 3:06 PM.