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Bipartisan FY26 Minibus Released As January 30th Shutdown Approaches

Tyler Durden's Photo
by Tyler Durden
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It seems that Congress may bypass our regularly scheduled shutdown drama - as House appropriators released the text of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2026 early Monday, marking a significant step toward completing all 12 annual spending bills ahead of the January 30 funding deadline and averting another government shutdown. The package reflects a rare point of bipartisan convergence on topline funding - even as Republicans and Democrats frame the deal in sharply different political terms.

The legislation packages conference agreements covering Defense; Labor, Health and Human Services and Education; Transportation, Housing and Urban Development; and Homeland Security, though GOP leaders have committed to moving the Homeland bill separately. Together, the three-bill minibus released Monday totals roughly $1.2 trillion in discretionary spending, according to Democratic appropriators.

Punchbowl News' John Bresnahan has summarized a few key provisions:

  • FEMA gets a big increase, $4.7 billion.

  • $28 billion-plus for ICE & CPB. This includes nearly $4B for “custody operations to bolster the Trump Administration’s efforts to detain and deport all criminal and removable aliens.”

  • $744 million in Homeland Security bill for “the transportation and removal of every alien who no longer has a legal basis to remain in this country.”

  • $2.6B for Homeland Security Investigations

  • $273 million in earmarks in FEMA

  • Keeps in place HUD layoffs, about 24% of staff.

  • $3.8 billion in earmarks in THUD bill

Republicans on the House Appropriations Committee cast the agreement as proof that Congress can complete its work without relying on year-end omnibus packages. Chairman Tom Cole said the deal reflects “a deliberate, member-driven process” that delivers full-year funding aligned with the Trump administration’s priorities while keeping spending below levels projected under the current continuing resolution.

“America has always been a nation of builders,” Cole said, arguing the bills reinforce military readiness, border security, education, health systems and transportation infrastructure while applying fiscal discipline. GOP leaders emphasized that the measures were negotiated on a bipartisan, bicameral basis and described the package as advancing an “America First” agenda centered on defense, innovation and domestic security.

The Defense title includes funding increases for military pay, investments in weapons systems and industrial supply chains, and research and development accounts aimed at accelerating next-generation capabilities. Homeland Security provisions emphasize enforcement, border operations and emergency preparedness, while maintaining longstanding riders barring housing assistance for undocumented immigrants and preserving restrictions related to abortion and livestock transportation.

Labor-HHS-Education funding, according to Republicans, prioritizes biomedical research, workforce training and rural health care, while Transportation and Housing provisions focus on air traffic control modernization, infrastructure safety and economic development assistance for local communities.

Democrats, however, described the agreement as a rebuke of the Trump administration’s budget proposals rather than an endorsement of them.

“This latest funding package continues Congress’s forceful rejection of extreme cuts to federal programs proposed by the Trump Administration,” said House Appropriations Committee Ranking Member Rosa DeLauro. She said Democrats and Republicans jointly rejected proposals to eliminate or sharply reduce funding for federal health, education and housing programs, instead sustaining or increasing funding in several areas.

The bill includes a ban on any new border crossing fees, which DHS cannot even study. 

DeLauro highlighted increased funding for the National Institutes of Health, investments in transportation infrastructure, and expanded resources for affordable housing and homelessness assistance. She said the housing provisions would prevent millions of households from losing housing while also supporting new construction.

Regarding ICE funding, DeLauro said: "I understand that many of my Democratic colleagues may be dissatisfied with any bill that funds ICE. I share their frustration with the out-of-control agency. I encourage my colleagues to review the bill and determine what is best for their constituents and communities."

"The Homeland Security funding bill is more than just ICE. If we allow a lapse in funding, TSA agents will be forced to work without pay, FEMA assistance could be delayed, and the U.S. Coast Guard will be adversely affected. All while ICE continues functioning without any change in their operations due to $75 billion it received in the One Big Beautiful Bill. A continuing resolution will jettison the guardrails we have secured while ceding authority to President Trump, Stephen Miller, and Secretary Noem."

The package also includes a pay raise for service members and funding increases for national security priorities - points of overlap that helped unlock bipartisan agreement despite deep philosophical differences over the role of federal spending.

Both parties emphasized the importance of completing full-year appropriations before the end of January, after years of stopgap funding measures that lawmakers from both sides say undermine agency planning and oversight. Republicans framed the deal as a break from what they described as “rushed, Christmas omnibuses,” while Democrats emphasized Congress’s role in reasserting its constitutional power of the purse.

The remaining point of contention is procedural rather than substantive: House Republicans have pledged to hold a separate vote on the Homeland Security bill, decoupling it from the current minibus even as the text has already been negotiated.

Still, with conference agreements finalized and leadership on both sides publicly backing the deal, the FY26 funding package appears on track for floor action later this week — setting Congress up to clear one of its most consequential must-pass items before the end of the month.

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