ADVOCACY & POLICY UPDATE - January 12, 2026

House Advances Three-Bill Funding Package as Partial Shutdown Deadline Approaches

Washington Update

Appropriations

On Thursday, January 8, in a vote of 397-28 the House passed three appropriations bills —  Interior–Environment, Energy–Water, and Commerce–Justice–Science — that will now head to the Senate. Congressional appropriators are also working to finalize a second three-bill package addressing State–Foreign Operations, Homeland Security, and Financial Services, with the goal of releasing legislative text and holding votes this week. Negotiations on the Homeland Security bill remain the most complex, reflecting unresolved funding-level differences between the House and Senate rather than partisan divisions. Discussions are ongoing to resolve those issues and allow the bill to move forward as part of the next minibus.

House Republican leaders have made procedural commitments to fiscal conservatives to secure support for the current funding package, including expanded opportunities to review, amend, and scrutinize earmarks in future bills. While passage of the current minibus is expected, these dynamics could complicate consideration of subsequent packages.

Appropriators are planning additional minibuses to move the remaining spending bills. One proposal would combine Homeland Security, State–Foreign Operations, and Financial Services, while another would pair Defense with Labor–HHS–Education and Transportation–HUD. Linking larger and politically sensitive bills is viewed as necessary to ensure bipartisan support in both chambers.

Bill text for the next package could be released soon, though disagreements over earmarks and remaining funding issues may affect the timeline. Senate appropriators are tentatively planning two additional minibus packages beyond the one currently advancing, with the final package expected to include the largest domestic and defense funding measures.

House Education and Workforce Committee

In 2026, House Education and Workforce Committee Chairman Tim Walberg (MI) is seeking to advance a labor and benefits agenda that builds on changes enacted under the One Big Beautiful Bill Act. At the GOP’s Kennedy Center retreat last week, Walberg highlighted recent policy shifts such as reduced business regulations and expanded tax credits for employers that subsidize child care, while signaling interest in further reforms centered on flexibility and choice for employers, workers, and investors. His priorities include expanding access to retirement savings options, increasing flexibility in employee benefits, and promoting choice-based approaches to workforce policy. 

Notably absent from Walberg’s retreat presentation was progress on reauthorizing the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA), which stalled after being removed from a 2024 year-end spending package. Walberg indicated that work on the legislation is ongoing and expressed confidence it will advance before the end of the current Congress, a view shared by former committee chair Congresswoman Virginia Foxx (NC).

While the Senate Health, Education, Labor, & Pensions (HELP) Committee has taken the lead on advancing employee stock ownership plan legislation, major labor bills from the House Education and Workforce Committee have yet to reach the House floor. Congressman Kevin Kiley (CA) has called for a floor vote on his Modern Worker Security Act, which would provide legal protections to companies offering portable benefits, arguing it could still attract bipartisan support.

This year is a critical window for the GOP to move legislation before a potential shift in congressional control after midterm elections.

Department of Education

On Friday, January 9, the U.S. Department of Education reached consensus on the final regulatory package to implement higher education provisions of the Working Families Tax Cuts Act, completing the negotiated rulemaking process associated with the law. The Accountability in Higher Education and Access Through Demand-driven Workforce Pell (AHEAD) committee agreed on a new accountability framework that applies uniformly across all postsecondary institutions and credential levels. The framework responds to concerns that some programs leave students with poor financial outcomes, contributing to loan defaults and increased costs to taxpayers.

Under the consensus proposal, the Act’s “Do Not Harm” standard is aligned with existing Financial Value Transparency and Gainful Employment regulations through common earnings thresholds. Programs that fail to meet these thresholds for two out of three years would lose access to the Direct Loan program. If such programs account for at least half of an institution’s Title IV loan recipients or funding, they would also lose Pell Grant eligibility. 

To streamline oversight, negotiators agreed to eliminate the Gainful Employment debt-to-earnings measure, citing duplication and administrative burden. Committee participants representing a range of stakeholder groups supported the framework for its consistent treatment of programs and balance between student protection and institutional accountability. While it’s not clear when the department will publish its new regulation, it is required by law to take effect by July 1.

Click here to access the press release. 

House Education and Workforce Committee Hearing

On Tuesday, January 13, at 10:15 am ET, the House Education and Workforce Committee will hold the hearing “Who’s Watching the Kids? How Employers, Innovators, and Parents are Solving America’s Child Care Crunch.”

Click here to watch the hearing.

Unemployment Rate

On Friday, January 9, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) released the December jobs report, which showed employers added 50,000 jobs last month, slowing from a downwardly revised 56,000 jobs added in November. The unemployment rate unexpectedly declined to 4.4% from a revised 4.5% in November. The US economy added just 584,000 jobs last year, which, outside of recession years, is the weakest annual job growth seen since 2003.

Click here to access the full report.

Click here to read Secretary Chavez-DeRemer’s statement on the December jobs report.