Blogs

Congress:

• FY27 Appropriations: House Republicans are slated to approve two more bills for floor consideration that would fund some domestic agencies through September 30. The House Appropriations Committee will meet tomorrow to begin voting on legislation funding National Security-State programs, and plans to vote Wednesday on the Agriculture-FDA spending bill. On Thursday, the House Commerce, Justice, Science, and Legislative Branch Subcommittees will hold a markup to consider their respective FY27 bills.
• FY 27 Earmarks: The House Agriculture-FDA bill includes earmarks for dozens of cities and countries. A table detailing Ag-FDA earmarks is available here.
• Budget Reconciliation: House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) will attempt to pass the Senate's reconciliation resolution before funding DHS, a vote currently envisioned for Wednesday. However, many House Republicans want the budget resolution, the framework for Reconciliation 2.0, expanded beyond just ICE and CBP, while Johnson has signaled his opposition to doing so. Johnson is expected to release a number of policies this week that he'll try to include in Reconciliation 3.0.
• Surface Transportation Reauthorization: House Transportation Committee Ranking Member Rick Larsen said he would support a fee on electric vehicles and hybrid cars to help fund the Highway Trust Fund. The surface transportation markup, originally scheduled for April 29, has been further delayed, with committee leaders targeting mid-May.
• House Coalition Pressures Leadership on Housing Bill: A bipartisan coalition of 76 House lawmakers wrote a letter to House leadership, urging them to reject the provision in the Senate-passed 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act that limits the role of large institutional investors in the housing market. They argued that the provision would reduce rental options and potentially raise prices.
• House Holds WIOA Markup: The House Education and Workforce Committee held a markup on A Stronger Workforce for American Act of 2026 (H.R.8210), which reauthorizes the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA). Democrats argued the bill would advance efforts to weaken the Education Department by moving Title II adult education programs to the Labor Department and would reduce workforce development discretionary spending by about 4 percent. The committee adopted Chair Walberg’s (R-MI) amendment by voice vote to make technical corrections and recognize apprenticeship degrees as an eligible use of workforce funds. The bill was reported out of committee on a party‑line vote, 19-14.
• House Republicans to Consider Legislation on Data Centers: House Energy and Commerce Republicans plan to hold an “AI and the Grid” legislative hearing next week. The hearing will reportedly consider legislation aimed at shielding consumers from electricity rate hikes tied to surging data center demand. The hearing announcement signals a shift toward a more active role for Congress—one that many lawmakers on both sides have been demanding.
• FirstNet Reauthorization Passes House: The House passed legislation (H.R.7386) on Monday, April 20 to reauthorize FirstNet, a wireless public safety network that provides first responders with dedicated wireless frequencies. The legislation would extend FirstNet’s authority through 2037 and enhance the Commerce Department’s control over the network.
• House Pulls Broadband Bill from Floor: House leadership pulled the American Broadband Deployment Act (H.R.2289) from floor consideration on Monday, April 20 after it became clear enough Republican members were not on board with the measure to guarantee passage.
• Farm Bill: House Agriculture Committee Reps. Jim McGovern (D-MA) and Jahana Hayes (D-CT) are urging their Democratic colleagues to vote against the farm bill when it comes to the floor the week of April 27.
• The House and Senate are in session.
• House Agenda: The House Rules Committee will meet at 1 p.m. to begin prepping the FISA bill, the Senate-passed budget DHS resolution, the farm bill, and a measure that mandates schools get parents' permission before changing a student's gender information.
• Disaster Tax Relief (H.R. 5366): The House will consider legislation that would extend tax benefits for losses related to qualified disasters and wildfires to cover those that occurred before Jan. 1, 2027. Individuals who suffer personal casualty losses from a disaster could continue claiming those losses without itemizing them, and even if they don't exceed 10% of their gross income. The House Ways and Means Committee approved the bill 43-0 on March 25.
• Virginia Supreme Court: Virginia’s Supreme Court will hear oral arguments in a challenge to Virginia’s recent redistricting referendum. Republicans hope the court will overturn the referendum results and block redistricting.
• Warsh: The Senate Banking Committee will convene today to vote on the nomination of Kevin Warsh, who was tapped by President Trump to serve as the next Federal Reserve Chair. Sen. Thom Tillis (R-NC) announced he will support Warsh’s nomination to chair the Federal Reserve now that the Justice Department has dropped an investigation into current central bank chief Jerome Powell.

Trump Administration:

• HUD Abandons Appeal on CoC: On Monday, April 20, the Trump administration abandoned its appeal of a lower court order temporarily blocking attempts by HUD to reshape the Continuum of Care (CoC) homelessness program. HUD had proposed shifting CoC program funds from permanent housing to temporary housing with work or treatment requirements.
• DOT Plans to Overhaul Air Traffic Control System: DOT officials outlined the plan to overhaul and modernize the nation’s aging air traffic control system, with the help of artificial intelligence (AI), by the end of President Trump’s term.
• Trump Administration Officials Depart: Secretary of Labor, Lori Chavez-DeRemer, is leaving the administration for the private sector amid a DOL inspector general investigation into alleged misconduct, including relationships with security staff and misuse of department resources. Deputy Secretary Keith Sonderling will serve as acting DOL secretary. Navy Secretary John Phelan is also leaving the Trump administration following reported tensions over shipbuilding, with Undersecretary Hung Cao assuming the role on an acting basis.

Hearings and Markups:

• NASA: Administrator Jared Isaacman will testify today before the House Appropriations Committee and tomorrow before the Senate Appropriations Committee.
• EPA: Administrator Lee Zeldin will testify before the House Appropriations subcommittee today. Zeldin on Tuesday will appear before the House Energy & Commerce Committee, and on Wednesday, testify before the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee.
• NOAA: Administrator Neil Jacobs will testify before the House Science, Space, and Technology Committee on Tuesday.
• Interior: Secretary Doug Burgum will testify before the Senate Energy & Natural Resources Committee on Wednesday.
• VA: Secretary Collins will testify before the Senate Appropriations Committee on Thursday.
• AI and the Grid: On Wednesday, the House Energy & Commerce will discuss several measures on AI and the grid that seek to “harden the grid and increase capacity, protect ratepayers from higher costs, and strengthen reliability.”
• Education: Secretary McMahon will testify before the Senate Appropriations Committee on Thursday.

Grants:

• CRISI Grant: FRA announced the availability of over $2 billion to fund projects that improve the safety, efficiency, and reliability of intercity passenger and freight rail. Applications are due June 22, 2026.
• Railroad Crossing Elimination Grant: FRA announced the availability of over $1 billion to fund projects that build overpasses or underpasses so cars and trains never meet; upgrade safety technology at crossings; relocate tracks in order to close a grade crossing; and educate Americans on how to cross train tracks safely. Applications are due June 8, 2026.
• DOE Grants: The DOE issued letters last week notifying hundreds of Biden-era grant recipients that it intends to retain, rather than terminate, their projects. The letters follow a year-long review of DOE grant awards and provide long-awaited clarity for grantees.

The Week’s News:

• Trump plans to nominate executive David Cummins as TSA administrator (CBS)
• DOJ has targeted hundreds of foreign-born American citizens for denaturalization (NYT)
• Trump posits buying a stake in airline company (Semafor)
• DOJ drops investigation into Fed’s Powell (Roll Call)
• King Charles Is on a Mission to Salvage U.K. Relations With Trump (WSJ)
• Trump tells Iran 'call us,' with peace talks stalled as Putin hosts Tehran's top diplomat (NBC News)