House Appropriators Complete FY26 Funding Bills, Advance Results for the American People
Washington, D.C. – For the American people, effective legislating means results. After months of hearings, markups, and bipartisan, bicameral negotiations, the House has completed action on all twelve Fiscal Year 2026 appropriations bills – advancing full-year funding through a transparent, member-driven process. To mark this critical milestone, Republican Appropriators, led by Chairman Tom Cole (R-OK), came together to reflect on this important step forward for responsible governance, with remarks from Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) and many Appropriations Subcommittee Cardinals.
Watch the full press conference here.
The twelve appropriations bills passed by the House – six of which have already been signed into law – cover the full scope of the federal government and deliver the certainty Americans rely on every day. Together, they provide critical resources for disaster preparedness, aviation safety, and infrastructure modernization; support pay raises for our servicemembers, Coast Guard, and air traffic controllers; advance biomedical research and work of our rural hospitals; strengthen efforts to combat deadly drugs and human trafficking; direct community-informed investments that address real needs in localities and make a tangible difference for families and neighborhoods nationwide; and back the supply-chain workers who keep the economy moving, including small businesses, farmers, ranchers, truckers, and maritime industries.
Developed through bipartisan, bicameral negotiations, these bills reflect a responsible, results-driven approach to governing – locking in savings for taxpayers, cutting red tape, and aligning federal spending with the mandate of the American people. They replace obsolete policies with focused investments that support readiness, security, economic growth, and a stronger future. With the House having completed its work on FY26, the Senate must now act to finish the process and keep the government funded ahead of the January 31 deadline. Read on for excerpts from the press conference.
Chairman Tom Cole (R-OK) said, "This would not have been possible without our Speaker and his leadership team, Leader Scalise, Whip Emmer, Conference Chair McClain – they set the conditions and, frankly, they pushed the work down to us and out of leadership offices down to the committee level, just as the Speaker said he would do. So, his commitment to regular order, to regular process, to moving through this, to allowing us to do the work we know how to do, and frankly, allow us to reach across the aisle. This Speaker is the reason these twelve bills happened. Mr. Speaker, we need to applaud you. I want the Speaker to know how much we appreciate him. I’ve got a couple other people to thank, and then I’ll call on the cardinals in order. I have to thank the White House and the President of the United States. President Trump endorsed every one of these packages. His support, and the work of his team in the White House, was absolutely indispensable in getting this done. Again, it’s the reason this hasn’t happened in a long time, and I want to thank President Trump and his team for everything they did to make sure that we had unity when we needed it, and to, frankly, have flexibility when we needed that. The President deserves a lot of credit for this. We’re always happy in Congress when we get something done in a bicameral way, and we hope that’s coming next week when the Senate comes, but the President of the United States has to sign these bills, and the President of the United States can sustain any veto he cares to cast. So the fact that he was an active participant in helping us is something that means a lot. Finally, I want to thank every member of the committee on both sides of the aisle. There were a lot of bipartisan votes today. I would be remiss not to thank my working partner on the other side, Rosa DeLauro. We didn’t vote the same on every single item in front of us today or on every single bill, but we would not have been able to have this process without her cooperation and her help and her commitment to Article I and to regular order. The same thing is true of our colleagues on the other side of the rotunda. They haven’t quite finished their job, but Susan Collins and Patty Murray are fantastic to work with, and again, while this is a big day for Republicans, this is a bipartisan, bicameral product in front of us that was negotiated out on both sides of the aisle. It’s not just a partisan victory, it’s a congressional and bipartisan victory. I appreciate that. Finally, I want to thank specifically my cardinals. We adopted a common philosophy at the beginning, I know Ms. DeLauro feels the same way: let’s push these decisions down to the subcommittee level and let the cardinals and the ranking members do their work. And by doing that, honestly, those are the best-informed experts we have in their subject matter on the committee, and frankly, usually in the House. When they make decisions and they make deals, I say that if you can stay within your numbers, I don’t care what you do. I will be supportive of whatever you produce as long as you stay within the toplines that you’ve been given. They did it. Quite honestly, every level you move this up, whether it’s to the four corners, or to the leadership, the decision becomes less informed and more political. So keeping it at the subcommittee level was really the key. The cardinals and their counterparts on the other side of the aisle are really responsible for this success.”
Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) said, "We've got some of the greatest leaders in a generation or more up here behind this podium. I'm excited to celebrate this moment with them. Thanks to our appropriators and Chairman Tom Cole for being here today. This is a monumental achievement... Despite the noise, despite our slim margins, despite the fact that most members in the House have never gone through a regular, member-driven appropriations process before, this team got it done. They stood together, and they did the hard work, and they got it done. The House has now passed all twelve appropriations bills, and the Senate will do the same, and the President is going to sign them into law. What a concept! I want to say this again for emphasis, and I don't want anyone to miss the significance of this: the House has passed twelve appropriations bills, and soon they will become law. Now, many people in this room said that it could never be done. We had many naysayers, but we worked right through that. It really is a remarkable thing. With the passage of this package of bills today, Republicans will have finally replaced the last of any Biden-era spending levels with Trump-era spending levels and policies. We spent less, we saved more taxpayer dollars, we codified efforts to remove waste and fraud and abuse, we advanced a full budget that provides real teeth and delivers the America First agenda, just as we promised that we would. This is the most significant progress towards restoring regular order in this institution in many years, and everybody here knows that. And it's because of the work of the Appropriators standing here behind me. Our Appropriators, this team, led so well by Chairman Cole, worked day and night for months to produce this outcome. It wasn't easy – it took a lot of work... It's true that Washington has become far too accustomed to governance by omnibus, and governing by omnibus is not the way it's supposed to work. It's not the way the Founding Fathers designed this system to work, because it's not responsible. It's not good stewardship. It's bad policy, it's bad politics, and it weakens our Article I authority. We break bad habits by replacing them with healthy ones, and that's what we've done here. I want to be very clear – this is a committee-led, member-driven funding package. It's exactly what we said we were going to get back to. With the passage of these bills today, Republicans have demonstrated that the appropriations process is alive and well, and we are changing this institution to work for the people to make it work better."
Chairman of the Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies Subcommittee Hal Rogers (R-KY) said, “I came on the Committee in 1983, under President Reagan, and we faced the same challenges then as we face now. And that is, how do we control the power of the purse and subject every penny of federal dollars according to the philosophy of Reagan then, and Chairman Cole now. We struggle every year to try to pass these twelve bills, with spotty success, until Tom Cole came along and gave us a brilliant plan, but also, more importantly, a brilliant piece of work by the cardinals and all members of this committee. So, Mr. Chairman, thank you for the brilliant leadership you have given to us, and brought 100% of every dollar we spend under the power of the purse of the Congress, and that’s why we owe you so much.”
Chairman of the Labor, Health and Human Services, Education and Related Agencies Subcommittee Robert Aderholt (R-AL) said, "It is a great day for Appropriations. It’s been many years since we accomplished what we did today. I was honored to serve as chair of Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education Subcommittee, and to lead and try to rein in spending where we need to rein in spending, but also support those programs that need to be supported. And again, Chairman Cole’s leadership on this, coupled with the Speaker – when he became speaker, he said “no more omnibus bils” and people took him at his word – I think that’s why we are where we are today, is because the Speaker, working with this committee, we were able to move forward."
Chairman of the Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies Subcommittee Mike Simpson (R-ID) said, "Whether you believe it or not, this really is a big day. We’ve moved this when nobody thought we were going to be able to move all these twelve bills across the floor. But we know how important it is. We’re not done yet, though. We’ve got to progress better next time toward getting back to regular order, where we actually have all the appropriations bills done on time, which is October 1st. We’re gonna keep pushing it. Without [Speaker Johnson’s] leadership, this would not have been possible. Without Tom Cole, this would not have been possible, either. The key to getting this done is letting the members who know what they’re doing, know their bills, the experts in those areas, do their jobs. And that’s what we’ve done throughout. Getting this done now, we’re already setting up hearings for next [fiscal] year. It’s so important to get those hearings started. In February, we’ll be holding hearings. We’ll be able to do our jobs much, much better by getting these bills done."
Chairman of the Military Construction, Veterans Affairs, and Related Agencies Subcommittee John Carter (R-TX) said, "This is a team action. Every bill, every member made up their mind they were going to make sure every one of these bills passed, and God bless every one of you. We worked the floor, we made it work, in every form and fashion. It was so fun to do a four corners as a cardinal and get to sit there with Debbie Wasserman Schultz as my counterpart. We discussed it, we fought about it – but we fought civilly. We came out with a great bill. We funded our veterans affairs, and we funded the needs of our military bases around the country and around the world. I’ve been honored to serve on this subcommittee. I love this subcommittee because I like the idea of thanking those guys that fought for us, and thanking those guys and gals that are fighting for us right now by giving them what they need to have a better lifestyle. [Tom Cole] changed appropriations, the way it’s supposed to be. He’s my hero."
Chairman of the Defense Subcommittee Ken Calvert (R-CA) said, "It’s a great day for the men and women who serve in the United States military. We made sure that we took care of them, as we should. We have a common saying on both sides of the aisle: our job is to make sure that the men and women who serve in the United States military are provided the best standard of living we can afford, that we give them the best equipment, and if we go to war – we win; they lose. Those are the principles in which we work together to make sure this bill succeeds. We do a lot in this bill for more ships, more planes, more munitions, more of everything that we need to make this country safe and secure. So working with our counterparts, working with the United States Senate, and working with the Administration, we provided what is needed in this bill."
Chairman of the Energy and Water Development and Related Agencies Subcommittee Chuck Fleischmann (R-TN) said, "Ladies and gentlemen, I have been privileged to chair the Energy and Water Appropriations subcommittee. It funds the Department of Energy, the Army Corps of Engineers, and the Bureau of Reclamation. America needs more energy, and we cannot fail – and we did not fail – in this bill. I would be remiss if I didn’t say this: Chairman Cole ushered in a new era in appropriations. When the Appropriations Committee works, it works for our great constitutional republic. Things work well, there’s a balance of power. I thank President Trump and his great Administration for giving us a budget, but then Congress comes together and works and gets it done."
Chairman of the Legislative Branch Subcommittee David Valadao (R-CA) said, "Today, Congress has followed through on its commitment to get back to regular order and deliver for the American people by passing all twelve Fiscal Year 2026 funding bills. We are restoring a process that puts accountability and responsible government first. For too long, Washington has relied on short-term extensions, band-aid fixes, and last-minute deadlines. That’s not what Americans expect, and certainly not what they deserve. As Chairman of the Legislative Branch Subcommittee, I took this responsibility seriously, and our bill focused on strengthening security across the Capitol complex, supporting hardworking sworn officers and staff who keep this place running, and ensuring the Capitol remains open to students, families, and visitors from all across the nation. We made real progress in each of those areas and are proud of what we were able to accomplish together. Appropriations is not easy work, and it’s not meant to be. It requires compromise, member-driven leadership, and commitment to getting the job done, and done in the right way. While the process takes time, this is what a return to regular order looks like. Today marks an important step towards restoring trust and how Congress handles the funding of the American people. I want to thank Chairman Cole for steadfast leadership, for keeping the appropriations process on track. We could not have got this done without the Chairman and his team. This is the type of day we dream of. I look forward to getting started on Fiscal Year 2027."
The House has completed its work through a bipartisan, bicameral process. The next step now rests with the Senate, which must act to provide the certainty and stability the American people deserve. House Republicans will continue building on the progress made during the FY26 appropriations process as we look ahead to FY27, maintaining a focused, member-driven approach grounded in transparency and regular order. Priorities such as robust military preparedness, steadfast support for our veterans, responsible investment in reliable energy production, and vital infrastructure modernization that strengthen communities will continue to drive our work and agenda.
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