Legislative Update: House Adjourns Early as Senate Continues Legislative Work

House Adjourns Early as Senate Continues Legislative Work

The House will hold its final votes on September 17 and then begin a 48-day district work period, with its next votes expected on November 9, after Election Day. Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) said the extended recess will allow members to campaign and discuss the Republican majority’s legislative record with constituents.  The Senate will remain in session beyond this week. Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) expects to determine by early next week whether negotiators can complete a bipartisan permitting-reform agreement. Senate passage could create pressure for the House to return early, but absent an agreement, final action is more likely during the post-election session. Both chambers are therefore expected to address much of their remaining legislative agenda after the November 3 elections.

Below is a roundup of where congressional action is on several important issues:

House Panel Advances Federal Recycling-Label Standards

On September 16, the House Energy and Commerce Committee advanced two bills that would establish the first federal standards governing recyclability and recycled-content claims. The committee approved the Recycled Materials Attribution Act (RMAA, H.R. 7502) by 28–19 with Rep. Marc Veasey (D-TX) joining Republicans in supporting the bill.  The Committee also passed the Packaging and Claims Knowledge (PACK) Act (H.R. 6832) by a largely party-line vote of 25–18.   Both measures may now proceed to the House floor, but neither has a Senate companion.

The RMAA, sponsored by Representative Nick Langworthy (R-NY), would establish a national standard for recycled-content claims and recognize mass-balance accounting, which allows recycled feedstock to be attributed across a production system rather than physically traced into each finished product. The Vinyl Institute, along with the  American Chemistry Council (ACC), U.S. Chamber of Commerce, and other industry organizations support both measures as a means of providing regulatory certainty.

Sponsored by Representative Randy Weber (R-TX), the PACK Act would establish national requirements for voluntary claims that products or packaging are recyclable, compostable, or reusable. Such claims would require certification by an accredited third party, and the legislation would preempt differing state and local requirements. The uniform federal framework would give consumers more reliable information while reducing compliance burdens created by varying state standards.

Senate Panel Advances Farm Bill After McConnell’s Return

The Senate Agriculture Committee approved its five-year farm bill on a 12–11 party-line vote after Senator Mitch McConnell (R-KY) returned to Capitol Hill and provided the deciding vote. The committee had rejected the same legislation 10–11 in August while McConnell was absent. The nearly 1,000-page measure would reauthorize and revise agricultural safety-net, conservation, and nutrition programs beyond changes enacted in the 2025 reconciliation law. Although the bill now moves to the Senate floor, the timing for its consideration remains uncertain. Committee Chair John Boozman (R-AR) said lawmakers could still negotiate a bipartisan compromise capable of passing the chamber. https://plus.cq.com/bill/119/DS1

The House passed its version, H.R. 7567, by a 224–200 vote in April. The current farm bill extension expires September 30, immediate disruption is unlikely: many mandatory agriculture and conservation programs have already been extended through fiscal 2031, while the continuing resolution funds SNAP through December 11. Congressional aides indicate that most remaining programs can operate through the end of the calendar year, giving lawmakers additional time to pass a new bill or another extension.

House Overwhelmingly Approves Bipartisan Water Infrastructure Bill

The House approved the Water Resources Development Act (WRDA) of 2026 (H.R. 9497) on September 17 by an overwhelmingly bipartisan vote of 415–9, with all opposition coming from Republicans. The biennial legislation would authorize billions of dollars in water infrastructure work by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, including projects and studies addressing navigation, flood control, water supply, ecosystem restoration, and water quality. It also includes changes intended to accelerate project delivery, improve communication with Congress and local communities, and establish specialized Corps offices for technical assistance and outreach. Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Chair Sam Graves (R-MO) and Ranking Member Rick Larsen (D-WA) described the measure as an investment in resilient infrastructure and a stronger partnership between the Corps and communities

The bill also responds to concerns about the Trump administration’s management of Corps projects and personnel. It directs the agency to maintain open communication with lawmakers and emphasizes the need for a sufficient workforce following retirements and a hiring freeze. These provisions reflect bipartisan interest in strengthening congressional oversight as the administration has delayed or reviewed certain projects, particularly in Democratic-led states. The legislation’s broad margin of passage keeps Congress on course to enact a water resources authorization bill before the end of the year.

The Senate Environment and Public Works Committee has advanced its own bipartisan version of WRDA 2026, leaving the chambers to reconcile their respective measures. One major difference is that the Senate bill would reauthorize several Environmental Protection Agency(EPA)  drinking-water programs that are not included in the House legislation. The final package will therefore depend on negotiations over the project authorizations, Corps policies, and EPA provisions before it can be sent to the president.

Congress Extends TSCA Fee Authority Through December

Congress extended the EPA’s authority to collect industry fees under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) through December 11, 2026, as part of the continuing resolution (H.R. 6500)  signed by President Donald Trump on September 2. Section 2005 of the funding law replaced the previous September 30 expiration date with the new December deadline. The fees cover approximately 25 percent of EPA’s TSCA implementation costs and support activities such as reviewing new chemicals before they enter the market. Without the extension, EPA would have lost its authority to assess those fees, potentially further constraining a program that has struggled to meet statutory review deadlines

The short-term extension gives lawmakers additional time to negotiate a longer reauthorization, potentially during the post-election session. Chemical manufacturers and other industry groups have advocated coupling a multiyear fee extension with targeted changes to the 2016 TSCA amendments, but negotiations have been slowed by policy disagreements among industry groups, Democrats, and environmental organizations.

Senate Negotiators Make Final Push for Permitting Agreement

Senate negotiators are making a final pre-election effort to reach a bipartisan agreement on legislation intended to accelerate federal permitting for energy and infrastructure projects. Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee Chair Mike Lee (R-UT) told Republican senators that he was “guardedly optimistic,” with legislative text potentially emerging within 72 hours. The principal negotiators—Lee, Ranking Member Martin Heinrich (D-NM), Environment and Public Works Committee Chair Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV), and Ranking Member Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI)—met on September 15 but have not finalized an agreement. Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) said leadership expects to know by early next week whether a viable compromise exists.

Significant policy and procedural obstacles remain. Democrats want the agreement to facilitate renewable-energy and transmission projects and have criticized the Trump administration’s treatment of previously permitted clean-energy developments, while some Republicans are concerned that a compromise could favor renewable energy too heavily. Negotiators must also secure support from both Senate caucuses, determine a path through the House, and complete the work before senators leave Washington. If they cannot reach an agreement within the compressed pre-election window, negotiations are expected to continue during the post-election session. Both Thune and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) have identified permitting reform as a potential area for bipartisan action, but lawmakers remain uncertain whether the current talks can overcome the longstanding divisions.

Senate Delays Third Reconciliation Effort Until After Midterms

Senate Republicans will postpone consideration of a third budget-reconciliation package until after the November midterm elections. Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) said the chamber will not take up a budget resolution before its October recess, despite the House’s July adoption of H. Con. Res. 113. That resolution would establish reconciliation instructions for approximately $73 billion in defense and intelligence funding, $12 billion in agricultural assistance, and $10 billion to implement new voting requirements. Senate Budget Committee Chair Ron Johnson (R-WI), who proposed adding another $10 billion for those voting provisions, acknowledged that there is insufficient time to complete the process before the election.

A post-election package could be broader and include another increase in the federal debt limit, which currently stands at approximately $41.1 trillion following a $5 trillion increase enacted in 2025. Estimates vary, but fiscal analysts generally anticipate that Congress may need to address the limit again during 2027. Some Republicans favor acting early to move the next deadline beyond President Donald Trump’s current term, although it remains unclear whether enough Republican senators support a third reconciliation effort. Delaying the process also allows vulnerable incumbents to avoid a pre-election “vote-a-rama,” during which senators may be required to vote on numerous politically sensitive amendments.