Majority Leader | Research | The Leader Board | THE NEWSR...Skip to primary navigation Skip to content×Close THE NEWSROOMRemarks Press Releases The Leader Board Op-Eds Videos SENATE RESOURCESRepublican Senators Committees Congressional Record Congress.gov Senate Floor Webcast ABOUT LEADER THUNE×Close THE NEWSROOMRemarks Press Releases The Leader Board Op-Eds Videos SENATE RESOURCESRepublican Senators Committees Congressional Record Congress.gov Senate Floor Webcast ABOUT LEADER THUNExxsearchxMENUFacebookXInstagramFacebookXInstagramVisit Leader Thune's South Dakota Site Here THE NEWSROOMRemarks Press Releases The Leader Board Op-Eds Videos SENATE RESOURCESRepublican Senators Committees Congressional Record Congress.gov Senate Floor Webcast ABOUT LEADER THUNExxsearchxMENUHomeTHE NEWSROOMThe Leader Board01.30.26Senate Republicans Continue Funding the Government Through Regular OrderThe Senate Has Now Passed 11 of the 12 Annual Appropriations Bills for FY2026, Proving That the Regular-Order Appropriations Process Can Still Work and Achieve Conservative Wins THE APPROPRIATIONS PACKAGE PASSED BY THE SENATE INCLUDES THE FY2026 DEFENSE APPROPRIATIONS ACT, WHICH BOOSTS TOPLINE DEFENSE SPENDING AND FUNDS THE PRESIDENT’S NATIONAL SECURITY PRIORITIESBy funding the government through the regular-order appropriations process, Congress will reduce billions of dollars in non-defense spending compared to what would have been spent under a continuing resolution. (U.S. Senate Committee on Appropriations: Committee Releases Conferenced Defense, Homeland Security, Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies, and Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies Bills – 1/20/26)In the previous fiscal year, despite the Senate Appropriations Committee passing 11 of the 12 annual appropriations bills on a bipartisan basis, then-Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) chose to not bring a single one to the floor, forcing the government to operate on a continuing resolution. (Punchbowl News: AM: The appropriations mess rolls on – 7/31/24; Congressional Research Service: Appropriations Status Table: FY2025 – accessed 1/30/26; U.S. Congress: H.R.1968 - Full-Year Continuing Appropriations and Extensions Act, 2025 – 3/10/25)Passing a full-year defense appropriations bill also avoids the dire impacts a continuing resolution has on the military:“A full-year CR is the enemy of readiness, modernization, and efficiency. The armed services want to make their budgets simpler, more efficient, and more flexible by consolidating budget lines. But they can’t do it under a full-year CR. Punting new appropriations directly contradicts the Pentagon’s stated goal of building a resilient, surge-ready munitions enterprise.” – Senate Defense Appropriations Subcommittee Chairman Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.)In furtherance of President Trump’s pledge to have the strongest military in the world, the FY26 Defense Appropriations Act sets topline base discretionary funding at $838.7 billion, which provides: (U.S. Senate Committee on Appropriations: Defense Appropriations Act, 2026 – 1/20/26)$193.3 billion in funds to pay for troop salaries, incentive pay, and permanent change of stationscosts, as well as funding for “the President’s request for a 3.8 percent pay raise for servicemembers.” (U.S. Senate Committee on Appropriations: Defense Appropriations Act, 2026 – 1/20/26)$294.4 billion “to begin to restore military readiness degraded under the FY 2025 full-year continuing resolution,” including an increase in funding for ship operations. (U.S. Senate Committee on Appropriations: Defense Appropriations Act, 2026 – 1/20/26)“For too long, our military has been told by its political leadership to prepare for and size themselves for one short war. The recently enacted reconciliation bill, the full year 2025 continuing resolution, and the 2026 defense authorization taken together are a good start. The final 2026 appropriation will be the last, important piece.” (American Enterprise Institute: 2026 Defense Policy Bill Again Shows Congress Can Work Together – 12/15/25)“The House and Senate’s conferenced version of a fiscal 2026 defense budget would restore funding for the Navy’s next-generation F/A-XX fighter and up the Pentagon’s spending request on the Air Force’s F-47.” (DefenseNews: US lawmakers release $839B compromise defense spending bill – 1/20/26)“The spending bill would also provide $27.2 billion for the Navy to build 17 ships, including a Columbia-class ballistic missile submarine, two Virginia-class fast attack subs, three medium landing ships and an anti-submarine warfare ship, the House said. The Senate said the conference bill increases spending on Columbia- and Virginia-class subs by $5.9 billion.” (DefenseNews: US lawmakers release $839B compromise defense spending bill – 1/20/26)“The bill also includes increases for destroyers and ‘$1.9 billion to fully fund the Navy’s ship operations, previously noted shipbuilding impacts totaling several billion dollars,’ senators wrote in the bill summary.” (Defense One: Navy shipbuilding stands to get $27 billion in funding in 2026 – 1/26/26)ALSO INCLUDED IS THE FY26 TRANSPORTATION, HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT, AND RELATED AGENCIES APPROPRIATIONS ACT, WHICH PROVIDES CRITICAL AVIATION FUNDING AND IMPROVEMENTS“The bill jump-starts efforts to modernize our nation’s antiquated air traffic control infrastructure by providing a $4 billion downpayment to upgrade outdated systems.” (U.S. Senate Committee on Appropriations: Department of Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2026 – 1/20/26)“It prioritizes airspace safety by providing funding for the FAA to hire 2,500 new air traffic controllers and an additional 54 aviation safety inspectors.” (U.S. Senate Committee on Appropriations: Department of Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2026 – 1/20/26)“The U.S. has been scrambling to hire more air traffic controllers for years. The longest-ever federal government shutdown might have made that even harder. ‘We need more of them to come into the profession, and this shutdown is going to make that more difficult for us to accomplish that goal,’ Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said at a press conference at Chicago O’Hare International Airport…a day before Congress signed a bill to fund the federal government through January, ending the shutdown.” (CNBC: The government shutdown is over. The air traffic controller shortage is not – 11/15/25)“A government tally last year showed the U.S. was short 3,903 fully certified air traffic controllers of a goal of 14,633.” (CNBC: The government shutdown is over. The air traffic controller shortage is not – 11/15/25)“The shortage of air traffic controllers delayed or canceled thousands [of] flights during the shutdown, affecting the travel plans of more than 5 million people, according to Airlines for America.” (CNBC: The government shutdown is over. The air traffic controller shortage is not – 11/15/25)Overall, this package provides the FAA $22.2 billion in funding. (U.S. Senate Committee on Appropriations: Department of Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2026 – 1/20/26)“The bill also continues to provide a lifeline to rural communities by fully funding the Essential Air Service Program, which ensures dependable air service to many small airports across our country.” (U.S. Senate Committee on Appropriations: Department of Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2026 – 1/20/26)The appropriations package also allocates $64.3 billion to the Federal Highway Administration to maintain and improve America’s roadway infrastructure. (U.S. Senate Committee on Appropriations: Department of Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2026 – 1/20/26)THIS LEGISLATION ALSO SUPPORTS PRESIDENT TRUMP’S GOAL TO REDUCE HEALTH CARE COSTS FOR AMERICANS, INCLUDING PBM REFORMS, AND REAUTHORIZES CRITICAL PUBLIC HEALTH PROGRAMSThe legislation includes “long-stalled priorities like an overhaul of the business practices of pharmacy benefit managers [PBMs] — the ‘middlemen’ between drug manufacturers and insurers — and new controls on how hospitals bill for outpatient services.” (Axios: Scoop: Bipartisan health package likely moving forward – 1/19/26)“Drug middlemen, known as pharmacy-benefit managers, have accomplished something rare in Washington: Their business practices have led to a bipartisan consensus of sorts around the need for more regulation.” (The Wall Street Journal: How Drug Middlemen Keep Beating the System – 7/10/24)The Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2026 enacts a major “overhaul of the pharmacy benefit managers. The legislation limits PBMs’ abilities to keep rebates as profits. It also tightens oversight of PBMs.” (Punchbowl News: Midday: What to watch for in the minibus – 1/20/26)This significant reform takes steps toward the goals of President Trump’s new health care plan, which called on Congress to examine the role of PBMs in rising health care costs. (White House: Fact Sheet: President Donald J. Trump Calls on Congress to Enact The Great Healthcare Plan – 1/15/26)“The health care agreement would extend several public health programs, including major telehealth flexibilities, through the end of 2027. It also would fund, through the end of the fiscal year in 2030, a program run through the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services that reimburses facilities for offering hospital-level care in the home.” (Politico: Congress clinches bipartisan health deal – 1/20/26)PrintEmailTweetNextPreviousTHE NEWSROOMSENATE RESOURCESABOUT LEADER THUNEFacebookXInstagram
