FY26 Appropriations Update

The House and Senate are on recess; the Senate is expected to return to Washington on September 29, while the House is scheduled to return on October 1. Negotiations on a short-term government funding deal are currently at a standstill ahead of the September 30 midnight deadline, when current funding expires. Stopgap legislation would give congressional appropriators additional time to complete the regular Fiscal Year 2026 (FY26) funding process.

The House passed a “clean” continuing resolution (H.R. 5371) on September 19 on a mostly party-line vote. The legislation would extend current government funding levels through November 21. It also contained additional funding for lawmaker security.

The House-passed bill was blocked in the Senate on September 19 on a mostly party-line vote. A competing short-term funding bill (S. 2882), proposed by congressional Democrats, was also blocked on a party-line vote. The Senate has a 60-vote threshold which requires bipartisan approval to pass funding bills.

Senate Democratic leadership has signaled an unwillingness to vote for a stopgap funding bill without negotiations on health care programs, increasing the chances of a government shutdown on October 1.

In preparation for a potential government shutdown, the White House Office of Management and Budget released a memo instructing agencies to prepare broad reduction-in-force (RIF) plans. Agencies are directed to consider RIFs with a focus on programs with discretionary funding that lapses on October 1, that do not have alternative funding sources, or are not consistent with administration priorities. More can be read at POLITICO.

Meanwhile, House and Senate appropriators have continued work on the regular FY26 appropriations process. The House passed the Energy and Water Development appropriations bill on September 4. The House Appropriations Committee passed the Financial Services appropriations bill on September 3; the Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education appropriations bill on September 9; and the Commerce, Justice, and Science appropriations bill on September 10. The FY26 House and Senate appropriations status table can be found on Congress.gov.

House Appropriations leaders made a motion to conference with the Senate on the Military Construction and Veteran Affairs; Agriculture, Rural Development, and Food and Drug Administration; and Legislative Branch appropriation bills on September 10. This would allow Congress to pass final appropriations legislation alongside a funding stopgap. More can be read at The Hill.

CU Federal Relations will continue to provide updates on the FY26 appropriations process and work closely with each campus in the event of a shutdown.

Rep. Crow Holds Town Hall at CU Anschutz

Rep. Jason Crow held a town hall with CU Anschutz faculty, staff, and students on August 21. The town hall included a conversation between Rep. Crow and CU Anschutz Chancellor Don Elliman on the federal landscape and recent developments in research and education policy and a Q&A with audience members.

More can be read at the CU Anschutz newsroom.

Rep. Neguse Speaks to CU Law Class

Rep. Joe Neguse, a CU Law School alum, spoke to Professor Scott Miller’s Public Land Law class on September 22, where he answered questions from students on his work on public lands legislation.

Reps. Neguse and Crank Attend CU Football Game

Reps. Joe Neguse and Jeff Crank attended the CU Boulder season-opening football game versus Georgia Tech on August 29.

Summary of Recent Congressional Staff Visits

Staff from the offices of Sens. Michael Bennet and John Hickenlooper and Reps. Joe Neguse, Lauren Boebert, Jeff Crank, and Brittany Pettersen joined CU in Colorado over the last month learning about the work of all four campuses at the CU Innovation Showcase, CU Boulder’s Center for Asian Studies Annual Reception, and the UCCS 9/11 Memorial Event.

CU OGR Participates in Congressional Roundtables with COBRT

CU Federal Relations had the opportunity to represent the University of Colorado by participating in congressional roundtable discussions during the month of September hosted by the Colorado Business Roundtable (COBRT) with Sen. John Hickenlooper and Reps Diana DeGette, Jason Crow, Brittany Pettersen, and Gabe Evans.