The U.S. Capitol is shown up North Capitol Street on Nov. 6, 2025 in Washington, DC.
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The Senate was on track Sunday night to pass a deal that could end the federal government shutdown, which began on Oct. 1.
A person familiar with the deal told CNBC that enough Democratic senators had agreed to vote for the deal to clear a 60-vote minimum threshold. It would fund the U.S. government through the end of January.
The deal does not include what had been the main sticking point for Democrats: an extension of enhanced Affordable Care Act tax credits, which are due to expire at the end of December. But the agreement calls for a vote in December on a Democratic-picked bill to extend those subsidies, which more than 20 million Americans use to reduce the cost of their ACA health insurance plans
“After 40 long days, I’m hopeful that we can bring the shutdown to an end,” said Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D.
Thune negotiated the deal with the White House and three members of the Democratic caucus, Sens. Jeanne Shaheen and Maggie Hassan, both Democrats from New Hampshire, and independent Sen. Angus King of Maine.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., in angry remarks on the Senate floor, said he would not vote for the deal. He blasted Republicans and President Donald Trump for refusing to agree to extend their ACA credits, which he said would lead to much higher insurance costs for millions of people in 2026.
The person familiar with the deal said that there are at least eight members of the Democratic caucus who would vote in favor of it. That would give the measure 61 votes, one more than the minimum required to pass.
If passed, the deal would have to be approved by the House of Representatives and signed into law before the shutdown would end.
“I have long said that to earn my vote, we need to be on a path toward fixing Republicans’ health care mess and to protect the federal workforce,” said Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Virginia, who said he will vote to support the deal.
“This deal guarantees a vote to extend Affordable Care Act premium tax credits, which Republicans weren’t willing to do,” Kaine said. “Lawmakers know their constituents expect them to vote for it, and if they don’t, they could very well be replaced at the ballot box by someone who will.”
The Senate has been stalemated for weeks over the Republican majority’s insistence on passing a House bill that would provide short-term funding for government operations, without addressing a key looming question over the fate of the ACA tax credits.
And most Democrats have refused to vote for a stopgap funding bill that does not extend the life of those ACA subsidies, which are due to expire at the end of the year.
Under the deal, Democrats would get to pick which bill is voted on at a time when there is strong public opinion in favor of extending the subsidies.
The deal also calls for a reversal of all permanent layoffs of government employees during the shutdown and protection of such so-called reductions-in-force happening until the end of fiscal year 2026.
The deal guarantees that all federal workers will be paid their normal salaries during the shutdown, when many of them were not allowed to work.
The package also includes provisions for having a bipartisan budget process and preventing the White House from using continuing resolutions to fund the government.
It would also fund, through September, the SNAP program, which helps feed 42 million Americans through food stamps.
This is breaking news. Please check back for updates.
