On the Hill: Senate to Consider Short-Term CR

Last week, the House passed a preemptive continuing resolution (CR) to extend government funding beyond Sept. 30, 2026, as well as the Reconciliation 3.0 budget resolution. House members have left Washington for the five-week August recess.

Senate Republicans return to Washington this week for a two-week legislative push, with preventing a government shutdown ahead of the Sept. 30 deadline at the top of the agenda. Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) hopes to advance a short-term CR before the August recess as well, although the Senate proposal will be bipartisan unlike the House version. While the Senate CR is expected to extend government funding through the November midterm elections, negotiations remain complicated by a proposed Office of Management and Budget (OMB) rule on federal grantmaking. Democrats are seeking to include language blocking the rule, while Senate Appropriations Chair Susan Collins (R-Maine) maintains that the issue should be addressed through the annual Labor-HHS-Education appropriations bill.

Meanwhile, progress on full-year funding bills has stalled amid disagreements over President Trump's proposed $1.5 trillion defense budget, making it unlikely that Congress will complete a Labor-HHS-Education bill before the OMB rule is scheduled to take effect on October 1.

Committee Activity This Week

The Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions will hold a markup on July 30 to consider education legislation and a health information privacy bill, and to vote on several nominations.

The Senate is in session Monday through Friday, and the House is in recess this week.

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