Continuing Resolution And Shutdown Compromise Contains No Anti-Trans Riders

The shutdown package must still get through the House of Representatives, and further fights on appropriations are expected by the new Jan 30 deadline.

Photo by Darren Halstead on Unsplash

On Sunday night, news broke that a group of Democratic senators had reached a compromise with Republicans to reopen the government. Shortly afterward, the Senate voted, with seven Democrats and independent Senator Angus King supporting a package that would fund the government through January 30 and fully fund some agencies for the entire 2026 fiscal year through a series of “minibus” bills. The deal drew swift criticism: Democrats secured no guarantee of extending Obamacare premium subsidies, and wins for core Democratic priorities were nonexistent. One community watching especially closely was transgender Americans, who have been directly targeted by multiple FY26 appropriations bills on the House side. EITM can confirm that the compromise continuing resolution and the accompanying minibus packages contain no anti-transgender provisions.

The deal breaks down as follows: the government will remain open through January 30 under a short-term, “clean” continuing resolution. Republicans agreed to allow a vote on extending Obamacare premium subsidies, though that vote is widely expected to fail. Separately, full-year funding bills have been negotiated for Veterans Affairs and Military Construction, the Legislative Branch, and Agriculture, with SNAP benefits funded for the entire fiscal year. Once January 30 arrives, Democrats and Republicans may find themselves in the same standoff again, either negotiating full FY26 appropriations or passing another stopgap measure to avoid a lapse in funding. Another shutdown remains possible, though its impact would be narrower, as some federal agencies will already be funded for the year under this agreement.

Democrats voting for the agreement include Sen. Dick Durbin of Illinois, Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto of Nevada, Sen. Jacky Rosen of Nevada, Sen. John Fetterman of Pennsylvania, Sen. Maggie Hassan of New Hampshire, Sen. Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire, and Sen. Tim Kaine of Virginia. Sen. Angus King of Maine, an Independent caucusing with democrats, also voted for the agreement. The agreement must now be fully accepted by the House for the government to reopen, with a vote expected in the next 48 hours.

Notably, the House versions of the VA/MilCon, Legislative Branch, and Agriculture funding bills did contain anti-LGBTQ+ riders before the shutdown. If the House accepts the Senate’s compromise, it would mark some of the first major defeats for those provisions in the FY26 budget fight. The House bills included measures allowing discrimination against LGBTQ+ people under the guise of religious liberty as well as a prohibition on Pride flags from being flown at many federal buildings, and earlier versions of the VA/MilCon bill had a prohibition on funds going to gender affirming care. If the House ultimately adopts the Senate’s compromise versions for the full fiscal year, these riders would be dead—at least for these portions of the federal budget—until late next year.

However, the deal does not touch the most consequential appropriations bill on the House side—the Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education package, which remains loaded with sweeping anti-transgender riders but has not been negotiated yet. The most alarming provision would ban “any federal funds” from supporting gender-affirming care at any age. If passed and interpreted broadly—and consistent with how Trump has already wielded his power against youth care—it could strip federal funding from hospitals that treat transgender people, a threat that has already pushed 21 hospitals to end care for trans youth, even in blue states. At minimum, the measure would end Medicaid and Medicare coverage for transgender healthcare nationwide. The House Labor/HHS/Ed bill for FY26 also carries other provisions: gutting protections for queer foster children, imposing a nationwide sports ban, and prohibiting Pride flags in public buildings. This bill was not part of the minibus package, which means that it may come up for a fight on January 30th when the short term continuing resolution ends.

Ultimately, the fate of these provisions—and of the compromise itself—hinges on what the House does next. Punchbowl News reports that GOP leaders expect the chamber to take up the package on Wednesday or Thursday. If they accept the Senate’s language, the government will reopen soon after. But at least one Democrat who voted for the continuing resolution, Senator Jeanne Shaheen, has already warned that another shutdown could follow on January 30th if Democrats are dissatisfied with the appropriations negotiations that unfold during this short-term funding window.