President Donald Trump has signed a bill ending the longest government shutdown in United States history, restoring funding after 43 days of political stalemate that left hundreds of thousands of federal workers unpaid.
The bill passed the House of Representatives late on Wednesday in a 222 to 209 vote, with six Democrats joining Republicans in support. It followed approval by the Senate earlier in the week. Mr Trump signed the legislation in the Oval Office, declaring the reopening of government departments, agencies and services.
“We can never let this happen again,” the president said during the signing ceremony, criticising his political opponents. “This is no way to run a country.”
The shutdown, which began more than six weeks ago, disrupted the lives of more than 1.4 million federal employees. According to the Bipartisan Policy Center, 670,000 were furloughed while another 730,000 continued working without pay. Back pay is expected to be issued in the coming days, with many employees set to return to work on Thursday.
National Parks, museums and other federal sites will reopen soon, although officials have warned that full operations may take several days. During the previous shutdown, the Smithsonian museums took four days to reopen.
The suspension of government services also left many Americans without essential aid. Food stamps, used by about 42 million people, will now be fully reinstated. However, programmes such as the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program, which provides heating subsidies for around six million households, could remain frozen for weeks. Head Start, which offers early education to low-income families, is expected to face similar delays.
Airports across the country are gradually returning to normal operations after severe staff shortages forced the Federal Aviation Administration to reduce flights at 40 major hubs.
While the signing of the bill marks the end of the immediate crisis, analysts say the effects of the 43-day shutdown will linger. The backlog of work, delayed services and economic costs are expected to take weeks, if not months, to resolve.
– Reporting by news agencies
Email your news TIPS to Editor@nairobilawmonthly.com, and to advertise with us, call +254715061658 anytime of the day
