Overview
Note: The Topline will be taking next week off due to the congressional recess and in observance of Memorial Day. We will be back in your inbox with our newsletter on June 6.
On Your Mark, Get Set…: Congress is still waiting on details following the release of the President's "skinny" budget request earlier this month, which called for a 22.6 percent cut in non-defense discretionary spending. While timing could shift, lawmakers are still expecting to receive additional details from the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) as soon as next week. Despite the delay, appropriators pushed ahead this week and are putting pen to paper for FY26.
The House and Senate chairs met this week to discuss next steps, and both chambers are expected to begin marking up their bills in June. Chairman Cole (R-OK) released an ambitious FY26 schedule seeking to begin markups on June 5 and wrapping up the process by July 24, right before Congress heads home for their month-long recess. This schedule comes as no surprise, as Chairman Cole has long indicated that he would like to have all bills reported out of the Committee by the August recess. The Senate has yet to release its schedule but is expected to begin marking up the last week in June, with Chair Collins (R-ME) committing this week to an "aggressive" markup schedule.
The Senate still needs to determine a topline, and Chair Collins is hoping to come to an agreement with Ranking Member Murray (D-WA) on that number. On the other side of the Capitol, Chairman Cole indicated to members this week that he is eyeing an FY26 topline of $1.613 trillion, confirming that the House will mark closely to the President’s requested spending levels. Notably, he told members that appropriations bills will be written without considering increases to Defense and Homeland Security budgets provided for in the House-passed reconciliation package, emphasizing that there is much left to be negotiated in reconciliation, and it would be unwise to write bills based on policy yet to be enacted.
Impoundment Controversies: The Trump Administration's threat of impounding funds that exceed its FY26 request continues to cause concern for appropriations discussions. This issue was raised several times during appropriations hearings with cabinet secretaries over the past few weeks.
Meanwhile, the Government Accountability Office is conducting 39 investigations into whether the Trump Administration has violated the Impoundment Control Act. The independent oversight agency closed one of these investigations this week, finding that the Administration illegally impounded funds meant for the National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Program. Expect impoundment controversies to continue impacting FY26 negotiations.
Last Call: Members are in the final stages of finalizing their FY26 requests as deadlines for programmatic and community project funding requests are coming due to the committees. While these deadlines are only for member offices, we continue to recommend touching base with your appropriations contacts in relevant offices regarding the status of your FY26 request. Guidance and upcoming deadlines for House member requests can be found here, with Senate guidance and deadlines found here.
