House GOP races to pass stopgap funding, budget reconciliation before weeks-long recess

WASHINGTON —

Congress is faced with a tight deadline to address government funding and several major bills before leaving for a five-week recess.

House members are scheduled to vote Tuesday night on a clean continuing resolution, or clean CR, which would keep the government running at current spending levels through most of December.

House Republicans are also preparing for a critical vote this week on what’s called “Budget Reconciliation 3.0,” a $95 billion framework that allocates nearly three-quarters of its funding to defense spending, primarily for military operations related to the war in Iran.

The bill also includes $20 billion for agriculture and farm aid, and $10 billion for President Donald Trump’s voter ID and proof-of-citizenship bill, the SAVE America Act.

Democrats in both the House and Senate have vowed to vote against the bill. Republican leadership is planning to use the reconciliation process to bypass a Senate filibuster and pass it with a simple majority vote rather than the standard two-thirds majority.

The fast-track strategy has previously been used to pass other bills and secure major policy initiatives, such as immigration funding.

Passing reconciliation 3.0 is not guaranteed with House Republicans’ razor-thin majority. Some hardline members argue the bill does not go far enough on spending cuts and voter ID mandates tied to the SAVE America Act.

The House has until Thursday night to finalize the bill and several other pieces of legislation before lawmakers leave Washington for a five-week recess. The Senate will leave for recess Aug. 7.

The National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) passed a procedural vote in the House on Tuesday, though full passage of the $1.15 trillion bill remains unclear.

Senate Democrats have balked at the price tag and have demanded answers on the military strategy for the war in Iran. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth tried to answer those questions during a Tuesday hearing on Capitol Hill, where he also requested an additional $87 billion in war funding.

That’s not all.

Efforts to renew the current Farm Bill, which is set to expire at the end of September, have stalled in the Senate. The Farm Bill oversees food stamp funding and animal welfare standards. Lawmakers will have less than a month to address the issue when they return after Labor Day if no action is taken now.

Another notable item on the agenda is the Stop Insider Trading Act, which passed a procedural vote in the House on Tuesday and could see a final vote this week.

The bill would prevent members of Congress and their families from purchasing new stocks while in office, though it allows them to retain stocks they already own. While the bill has broad Republican support, many Democrats argue it does not go far enough. Democrats also oppose the strict voter ID requirements attached to the bill.

One bill that has seen little movement is the Sunshine Protection Act, which would make daylight saving time permanent nationwide. After passing the House in a 308-to-117 vote last week, the bill was referred to a Senate committee with no indication of when or if a final vote will occur.

Follow the funding votes: