U.S. passes bill to end government shutdown

The U.S. Senate approved a compromise that would end the longest government shutdown in U.S. history, breaking a weeks-long stalemate that has disrupted food benefits for millions, left hundreds of thousands of federal workers unpaid and snarled air traffic.

The U.S. Senate approved a bill that would restore funding for federal agencies until January 30 in a vote on Monday.

The 60-40 vote would end the longest government shutdown in U.S. history. The deal next heads to the House of Representatives, and if passed by the lower house of the U.S. Congress, it will be sent on to U.S. President Donald Trump for signing into law.

Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky was the sole Republican "no" vote.

The U.S. federal government agencies partially suspended work at midnight on October 1 due to a lack of funding after representatives of the ruling Republican party failed to reach agreement with the Democrats in the U.S. Congress on some expenditure items, including healthcare. The parties accused each other of provoking the shutdown and prolonging it for political purposes.

The current U.S. government shutdown has become the longest in the country’s history, breaking the record set in 2018-2019 during Trump’s first term as president (2017-2021).