Derek Schmidt

U.S. Rep. Derek Schmidt said Topekans working for Coast Guard payroll processing center here in Topeka should soon get paid.

This comes while legislators finish developing a deal to refund the Department of Homeland Security.

President Donald Trump announced April 2 that money would be moved around so Coast Guard employees could get paid.

"I was really pleased with that outcome," said Schmidt, who spoke to media at the Greater Topeka Partnership event April 2. "I'm sorry for everybody that it took so long to get to that point, but I hope it helps a lot of folks here in our community sort of settle things back into something approximately normal until we can get the deal closed."

Schmidt said he and his colleagues have been working to get their constituents paid.

"Several of us who represent large groups of Coast Guard employees and support have been pushing the administration very hard to take an interim step to get them paid," Schmidt said. "Just like they're doing with TSA until the legislation gets worked out."

Schmidt also recognized that federal employees have faced the brunt of the conflict over funding DHS.

"While all this is playing out, there has been a lot of federal employees who have been caught in the middle, as well as contractors for federal agencies caught in the middle," Schmidt said.

U.S. Rep. Derek Schmidt says DHS deal is soon to be sealed

Schmidt says he's hopeful that the federal government is close to closing a deal to reopen the Department of Homeland Security.

"I'm hopeful we're very close to getting that deal sealed," Schmidt said. "We had a conversation this morning and, as you know, it's been in the news and the president, (Senate Majority) Leader (John) Thune and (House) Speaker (Mike) Johnson have reached a general agreement on a framework to go forward. I'm expecting that will be the path that we're going to follow. It's not a foregone conclusion yet."

DHS has been in a funding crisis for nearly seven weeks, becoming the longest-ever partial government shutdown.

What does the Department of Homeland Security deal entail?

The deal in question would require two bills: an appropriation bill to fund everything except the two immigration related agencies and a reconciliation bill, which is a special rules type of spending bill and would fund Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Customs and Border Protection.

"There's a lot of debate about mechanically how that's to be made to happen, but it does appear that's the the path forward that the leaders have settled on, and I think it makes sense," Schmidt said. "I actually thought it made sense last week when it was proposed."