This week, House Appropriations Chair Tom Cole (R-OK) released FY 26 House subcommittee allocations for the twelve appropriations bills. The allocations were approved 35 to 26 in a party line vote in the House Appropriations Committee yesterday. House appropriators are writing their bills to a nearly $1.6 trillion discretionary topline, with about $892.5 billion for defense and $705.6 billion for non-defense discretionary spending. The Labor-HHS bill’s allocation is $184.491 billion.

The House’s proposed discretionary funding level is almost three percent below the FY 25 level passed in March. Defense spending is proposed to be level funded, and the proposed nondefense discretionary level would be nearly six percent below the FY 25 level, with proposed cuts of $44.7 billion. The House’s proposed level for nondefense discretionary spending is significantly higher than what the White House has called for, as President Trump’s FY 26 budget proposed a 23 percent cut to nondefense discretionary spending.

The Labor-HHS bill was previously scheduled to be marked up in subcommittee on July 21 and in full committee on July 24, but the House cancelled one week of session earlier this month which pushed back the Committee’s work. The House Labor-HHS bill text is now expected to be released and taken up in early September, when Congress returns from August recess. The House Labor-HHS bill is tentatively set to be marked up in subcommittee on Thursday, September 4 and marked up in full committee on Tuesday, September 9.

The Senate has not released its full subcommittee allocations, but is expected, like last year, to propose higher spending levels than the House. A Labor-HHS markup in the Senate Appropriations Committee has not been scheduled at this time.