Congress Approves FY 2026 Labor, HHS, Education Appropriations Bill

Washington, D.C. -Today, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the Fiscal Year (FY) 2026 Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act by a vote of 217 to 214. The legislation, which passed the U.S. Senate by a vote of 71 to 29, provides support to strengthen America's workforce and fund important health and education programs. It now heads to the President's desk to be signed into law.

The bill provides $194.9 billion in discretionary funding.

"This bill prioritizes funding to help make Americans healthier and supports lifesaving biomedical research, including through targeted funding for Alzheimer's, cancer, Lyme disease, Parkinson's, ALS, diabetes, and rare disease research. It also provides significant resources for substance use prevention and treatment programs to help combat the scourge of fentanyl and other illicit narcotics plaguing our towns and cities," said Senator Susan Collins, Chair of the Appropriations Committee. "By promoting financial stability for working parents and strengthening our economy, this legislation also invests in education and increasing resources for affordable child care."

"As the chairman of the Labor-HHS Appropriations Subcommittee, I am proud to once again craft an effective bill that maintains provisions that are critical to the departments my subcommittee oversees. This bill reflects the many priorities that will help West Virginians from all corners of our state. I am pleased that the Senate has passed this legislation, and appreciate the fulfilled promise of bringing Appropriations bills to the floor under regular order," said Senator Shelley Moore Capito, Chair of the Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education Appropriations Subcommittee.

Bill Highlights:

National Institutes of Health: $48.7 billion for biomedical investments in research.

• Alzheimer's: $3.9 billion for Alzheimer's disease and related dementia research.

• Cancer: $7.4 billion for the National Cancer Institute, including $30 million for the Childhood Cancer STAR Act.

• Diabetes: $2.3 billion for the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases.

• ALS: $90 million for Accelerating Access to Critical Therapies (ACT) for ALS Act research.

• Women's Health Research: $30 million increase for the Office of Research on Women's Health and $10 million increase for maternal health research.

Combatting the Opioid Epidemic: $1.6 billion for the State Opioid Response Grants; $1.9 billion for the Substance Use Prevention, Treatment, and Recovery Services Block Grant; and $145 million for the Rural Communities Opioid Response program to support efforts to combat the opioid epidemic and other substance use disorders. Funding provided in the bill will also support strengthening the workforce, especially in rural communities, and expanding research for critical needs, such as funding alternative pain medications.

Mental Health: More than$5.5 billion for mental health research, treatment, and prevention, including:

• $535 million for the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) suicide prevention Lifeline, 9-8-8.
• $386 million for Certified Community Behavioral Health Clinics.
• $2.2 billion for the National Institute of Mental Health.
• $1 billion for the Mental Health Block Grant.
• $164 million for school-based mental health grants at the Department of Education.

Health and Human Services Preparedness: $3.7 billion for the Administration for Strategic Preparedness and Response. The bill includes $1 billion for the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA), $850 million for Project BioShield, and $1 billion for the Strategic National Stockpile.

Rural Health: $418 million for the Health Resources and Services Administration's rural health programs and $6 million for the CDC Office of Rural Health.

Caregiving: $234 million for the Administration for Community Living's family caregiving and respite care programs.

Early Education: $8.8 billion for the Child Care and Development Block Grant and nearly $12.4 billion for Head Start.

K-12 Formula Grants: $18.4 billion for Title I Grants to Local Educational Agencies and $15.2 billion for IDEA State Grants.

Career, Technical, and Adult Education: $1.5 billion for Career and Technical Education and $729 million for Adult Education.

Rural Education: $225 million for the Rural Education Achievement Program and $45 million for the Rural Postsecondary and Economic Development Grant Program.

Apprenticeship Funding: $285 million for the Apprenticeship Grant Program.

Pell Maximum Award: Maintains the maximum Pell award at $7,395 for the 2026-2027 school year.

Maintains Legacy Riders: The bill maintains long-standing riders, including Hyde and Hyde-Weldon conscience protections, needle exchange prohibition, NLRB electronic voting prohibition, and the Dickey Amendment.

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