The U.S. Department of Homeland Security is ending its furloughs. Newly confirmed Secretary Markwayne Mullin issued a directive recalling the entire DHS workforce back to active duty. This massive administrative shift occurs in the middle of a partial government shutdown driven by a fierce partisan deadlock. Senate Democrats have refused to approve the 2026 DHS budget without imposing strict new guardrails on Immigration and Customs Enforcement following the January killings of two U.S. citizen protesters in Minneapolis.
Mullin is utilizing alternate administrative funds to process paychecks and issue back pay dating to February 14. A spokesperson confirmed the department is drawing partially from President Trump’s “One Big Beautiful Bill Act” passed last year. A notice from DHS Chief Human Capital Officer La’ Toya Prieur ordered all employees back to a “work and paid status.” Separate guidance instructed FEMA personnel to return to their normal duty stations in person.
This funding lapse severely degraded federal operations, according to a CBS News report. Tens of thousands of workers went without pay. The Transportation Security Administration experienced acute shortages. Over 12 percent of the TSA workforce called out sick. Hundreds quit entirely because they could not afford basic expenses, triggering massive delays at major U.S. airports.
Now past its eighth week, this is the longest partial government shutdown of a single agency in U.S. history, surpassing the previous 43-day record. The American Federation of Government Employees combated the freeze through protests and lawsuits for weeks. The union secured a major victory for its 47,000 members who will now receive their withheld wages. The Trump administration continues to aggressively reshape executive branch protocols, drawing intense scrutiny similar to when Pam Bondi was fired from the Justice Department. Experts are actively monitoring the operational fallout across various agencies, as detailed by Government Executive.
How Mullin’s Recall Alters Executive Branch Funding Protocols
This directive fundamentally alters how the executive branch maneuvers through congressional appropriations freezes. The Antideficiency Act historically limits federal operations during a funding lapse. Agencies typically only retain “excepted” personnel necessary to protect life and property, and those employees work without pay until the shutdown ends. Mullin is expanding this definition. By tapping into alternate legislative funds to recall non-excepted, furloughed workers, the department is bypassing the traditional congressional power of the purse. This establishes a new historical precedent for how the White House can bypass a legislative budget blockade to keep a massive federal agency fully operational.