The Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act, as amended (OCSLA, 43 U.S.C. §1337(p)), authorizes the Secretary of the Interior to lease submerged lands on the U.S. outer continental shelf (OCS) for development of renewable energy, including wind energy. The Department of the Interior’s (DOI’s) Bureau of Ocean Energy Manageme…

Agricultural exports are significant to farmers and the U.S. economy. With the productivity of U.S. agriculture growing faster than domestic demand, farmers and agriculturally oriented firms rely on export markets to sustain prices and revenue. The trade title of the Agriculture Improvement Act of 2018 (2018 farm bill…

The U.S. government supports a broad range of scientific and engineering research and development (R&D). Most of the R&D funded by the federal government is performed in support of the unique missions of individual funding agencies. Using information provided by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) regarding fund…

The Nutrition title of the farm bill typically reauthorizes a number of nutrition or domestic food assistance programs, including the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP, formerly the Food Stamp program). These programs were last reauthorized by the Agriculture Improvement Act of 2018 (2018 farm bill; P.L.…

Congress has long considered how to pay for investment in highway and public transportation infrastructure. Since 1956, federal surface transportation programs have been largely funded by taxes on motor fuels that flow into the Highway Trust Fund (HTF). In 2001, however, trust fund revenues stopped growing faster than…

The Unemployment Insurance (UI) system is a joint federal-state partnership that consists of two types of benefits: (1) permanently authorized programs, including the Unemployment Compensation (UC) and Extended Benefit (EB) programs; and (2) temporary federal UI benefits created by congressional action to supplement t…

Congress provided FY2026 appropriations totaling $839.2 billion for certain national defense activities of the Department of Defense (DOD) through the Department of Defense Appropriations Act, 2026 (Division A of P.L. 119-75). (DOD is “using a secondary Department of War designation,” under Executive Order 14347 dated…

The Help America Vote Act of 2002 (HAVA) was enacted in response to issues with the administration of the 2000 elections. The highest-profile problems in those elections were in Florida—where disputes about the vote count delayed the resolution of the presidential race for weeks—but post-election hearings and reports…

The FY2025 reconciliation law (P.L. 119-21; commonly known as “the One Big Beautiful Bill Act”) was signed into law on July 4, 2025. The act was established pursuant to H.Con.Res. 14, a budget resolution, which set budgetary goals for certain House and Senate committees. The House Committee on Energy and Commerce and…

Title VIII of P.L. 119-21 (also referred to as the FY2025 budget reconciliation law) amended the Higher Education Act of 1965 (HEA) to update several aspects of the William D. Ford Federal Direct Loan (Direct Loan) program, which is the single largest source of federal financial assistance to support students’ postsec…

Mexico, the 10th most populous country and 13th largest economy in the world, is bound to the United States by geography and deep economic, cultural, and historical ties. In addition to sharing a nearly 2,000-mile land border, Mexico was the top U.S. trade partner in goods in 2025 and the second-largest oil supplier,…

The second Trump Administration’s Department of Defense (DOD) budget request for FY2026 included $848.3 billion in discretionary funding and $113.3 billion in mandatory funding (DOD is “using a secondary Department of War designation,” under Executive Order 14347, dated September 5, 2025). Of the discretionary funding…

The Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation, part of the Department of the Interior) has for more than a century been involved in the construction and operations of water storage projects in the 17 arid and semiarid western states. In the past, Congress generally provided full, up-front funding for the construction of thes…

The federal prison system, operated by the Bureau of Prisons (BOP), is the largest correctional system in the United States, both in terms of the number of prisoners under its jurisdiction and the number of facilities it operates. In recent years, BOP has faced issues with recruiting and retaining correctional officer…

Virginia-class submarine program. The Navy has been procuring Virginia (SSN-774) class nuclear-powered attack submarines (SSNs) since FY1998, and a total of 41 have been procured through FY2025. From FY2011 through FY2024, they were procured at a rate of two per year. A single Virginia-class boat was procured in FY202…

The size of the Coast Guard’s polar icebreaker fleet and Coast Guard programs for building new polar icebreakers have been oversight matters for Congress for many years. A 2023 Coast Guard fleet mix analysis concluded that the service will require a total of eight to nine polar icebreakers, including four to five heav…

The current and future size and composition of the Navy, the annual rate of Navy ship procurement, the prospective affordability of the Navy’s shipbuilding plans, the capacity of the U.S. shipbuilding industry to execute the Navy’s shipbuilding plans, and Navy proposals for retiring existing ships have been oversight…

The Coast Guard is procuring a combination of National Security Cutters (NSCs), Offshore Patrol Cutters (OPCs) and Fast Response Cutters (FRCs) as replacements for 90 earlier-generation Coast Guard high-endurance cutters, medium-endurance cutters, and patrol craft, respectively. National Security Cutters are the Coast…

The Navy’s Medium Landing Ship (LSM) program, previously called the Light Amphibious Warship (LAW) program, envisions procuring a class of 18 to 35 new amphibious ships to support the Marine Corps, particularly in implementing a new Marine Corps operational concept called Expeditionary Advanced Base Operations (EABO).…

The John Lewis (TAO-205) class oiler shipbuilding program is a program to build a new class of 20 fleet oilers for the Navy. The Navy procured the first TAO-205 in FY2016, and a total of 10 TAO-205s have been procured through FY2025. (The 10th was procured in FY2024, and no TAO-205s were procured in FY2025.) The first…

Title IV of the Higher Education Act (HEA) authorizes the primary federal financial assistance programs to aid students and their families in gaining access to and financing a postsecondary education. These programs include the William D. Ford Federal Direct Loan (Direct Loan) program and the Pell Grant program. On Ju…

Lawmakers have proposed increasing taxes on income from U.S. sources by nonresident aliens from countries that impose taxes considered to be discriminatory (Section 899 of the Internal Revenue Code). For example, the version of H.R. 1 (also known as the One Big Beautiful Bill Act), passed by the House on May 22, 2025,…

The Constitution requires that the House and Senate approve the same bill or joint resolution in precisely the same form before it is presented to the President for his signature or veto. To this end, both houses must pass the same measure and then attempt to reach agreement about its provisions. The House and Senate…

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) was created in the 2010 Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (Dodd-Frank, P.L. 111-203). Dodd-Frank specified that the CFPB would be funded outside of congressional appropriations through quarterly transfers from the Federal Reserve as requested by t…

Introduction The Navy’s Light Replenishment Oiler (TAOL) program, previously called the Next-Generation Logistics Ship (NGLS) program, envisages procuring a new class of 13 at-sea resupply ships for the Navy. The Navy’s FY2026 budget submission suggests that the first TAOL is programmed for procurement in FY2028. The…

The 2010 Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (Dodd-Frank Act, P.L. 111-203), a wide-ranging financial reform bill, created the Financial Stability Oversight Council (FSOC) and the Office of Financial Research (OFR) in response to the 2008 financial crisis. Some observers contended that gaps and s…

The Congressional Budget Act of 1974 (the Budget Act) provides for the annual adoption of a concurrent resolution on the budget, known as the “budget resolution.” The budget resolution is intended to serve as an agreement between the House and Senate on a high-level budgetary plan that includes, among other matters, r…

Since 2008, the U.S. coal industry has seen a decline in the amount of coal mined and consumed—although mining efficiency has improved. The industry’s U.S. employment has declined 92% over a century. U.S. coal consumption and production peaked in 2007 and 2008, respectively. Coal’s decline is due in part to technologi…

The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), formerly called the Food Stamp Program, is designed primarily to increase the food purchasing power of eligible low-income households to help them buy a nutritionally adequate low-cost diet. This report describes the rules related to eligibility for SNAP benefits a…

The Navy’s Columbia (SSBN-826) class ballistic missile submarine (SSBN) aims to design and build a class of 12 new SSBNs to replace the Navy’s current force of 14 aging Ohio-class SSBNs. Since 2013, the Navy has consistently identified the Columbia-class program as the Navy’s top priority program. The Navy procured th…

For more than a decade, consecutive U.S. Administrations have sought to coordinate with Mexico to reduce unauthorized migration to the United States. U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) reported record numbers of migrant encounters (2.5 million) on the southern border in FY2023 and still elevated numbers in FY202…

In the United States, accounting and auditing standards are promulgated and regulated by various federal, state, and self-regulatory agencies. Accounting and auditing standards are also influenced by practitioners from businesses, nonprofits, and government entities (federal, state, and local). Many of the foundationa…

When the Senate is considering a reconciliation bill, Section 313 of the Congressional Budget and Impoundment Control Act (the Budget Act) prohibits the inclusion of matter that is “extraneous” to a committee’s reconciliation instructions. This provision is known as the “Byrd rule,” after its chief author and proponen…

Nutrition provisions in the FY2025 budget reconciliation law (sometimes referred to as the One Big Beautiful Bill Act [OBBBA]; P.L. 119-21/H.R. 1), as enacted on July 4, 2025, are estimated to reduce federal spending on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). To achieve such savings, the new law signific…

The U.S. specialty crop market consists of hundreds of different types of products. Each market has its own set of unique production and marketing conditions. Specialty crops are defined as “fruits and vegetables, tree nuts, dried fruits, and horticulture and nursery crops (including floriculture)” (7 U.S.C. §1621). A…

Civil aviation programs address air traffic control and aviation safety, funding for air traffic control facilities and equipment, grants for airports under the Airport Improvement Program (AIP), and civil aviation research. These programs are administered by the Department of Transportation (DOT) and the Federal Avia…

P.L. 119-21 (H.R. 1 in the 119th Congress, also referred to as the FY2025 reconciliation act or the One Big Beautiful Bill Act) was enacted into law on July 4, 2025. It was developed and considered as part of the budget reconciliation process triggered by the adoption of H.Con.Res. 14, the Concurrent Resolution on the…

Cost-sharing reductions (CSRs) are subsidies that reduce out-of-pocket expenses (e.g., deductibles) for certain health benefits covered under plans offered through the health insurance exchanges (i.e., marketplaces) established under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA; P.L. 111-148, as amended). The A…

The Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) nonproliferation and national security programs provide technical capabilities to support U.S. efforts to reduce the threat of nuclear weapons proliferation and nuclear terrorism. These programs are administered by the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA), a semi-autonomou…

The U.S. estate and gift tax system includes a generation-skipping transfer tax (GSTT) to address circumstances in which wealth is transferred to younger generations (such as grandchildren) or unrelated persons more than 37.5 years younger than the decedent. This tax is in addition to the estate tax, and is designed t…

Almost all borrowing by the federal government is conducted by the Department of the Treasury, within the restrictions established by a single, statutory limit (ceiling) on the total amount of debt that may be outstanding at any time. By law, the Treasury cannot exceed federal debt limits, so the Treasury periodically…

Like other vehicles, electric vehicles (EVs) may use federally funded roads. Unlike other vehicles, EVs do not consume gasoline or other fuels, and thus do not incur federal fuels taxes. To address this perceived discrepancy and the growing gap between federal highway revenues and spending, policymakers have proposed…

In July 2025, Congress enacted H.R. 1, the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (P.L. 119-21), providing for FY2025 budget reconciliation. Title 1 (Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry) of P.L. 119-21 makes changes to nutrition assistance, farm support, conservation, horticulture, and other agricultural programs ty…

On July 3, 2025, Congress passed H.R. 1, commonly known as the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBA), which the President signed into law on July 4, 2025 (P.L. 119-21). The act was a reconciliation bill pursuant to directives included in the FY2025 budget resolution (H.Con.Res. 14). Title III, originally authored by the S…

On July 3, 2025, Congress passed H.R. 1, commonly referred to as the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, which the President signed into law on July 4, 2025 (P.L. 119-21). This was a reconciliation bill pursuant to directives included in the FY2025 budget resolution (H.Con.Res. 14). H.Con.Res. 14 included reconciliation direc…

Introduction On July 3, 2025, Congress passed the 2025 reconciliation legislation (H.R. 1), which President Donald J. Trump signed into law on July 4, 2025 (P.L. 119-21). This product summarizes funding provisions totaling $156.2 billion in FY2025 for defense purposes in Title II of the legislation (see Table 1). Back…

Introduction A section in the 2025 budget reconciliation legislation often referred to as the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (P.L. 119-21, Title II, §20003) provided $24.4 billion for integrated air and missile defense. A joint House Armed Services Committee (HASC) and Senate Armed Services Committee (SASC) reconciliation…

Introduction The Coast Guard’s Waterways Commerce Cutter (WCC) program envisages procuring 30 replacements for the Coast Guard’s 35 aging river buoy tenders (WLRs), inland construction tenders (WLICs), and inland buoy tenders (WLIs). Construction of the first two WCCs began in FY2025, and the Coast Guard’s FY2026 budg…

One Military Department with Two Military Services The Department of the Navy (DON) is a single military department that includes two military services—the Navy and the Marine Corps. As such, DON has a single civilian leader, the Secretary of the Navy, and two four-star military service chiefs—an admiral whose title i…

U.S. consumers, particularly low-income consumers, may face challenges during periods of rising food prices. Policymakers may find it helpful to understand federal sources for U.S. retail food price data and for other intermediary commodity prices (e.g., producer prices and wholesale prices). These data and their tren…

On May 22, 2025, the House passed its version of H.R. 1, the One Big Beautiful Bill Act. On July 1, the Senate passed its version of the bill. The bill would reduce tax rates, adjust spending for various federal programs, increase the statutory debt limit, and otherwise address agencies and programs throughout the fed…

Congress has long been interested in nuclear energy policy in the context of climate change mitigation. A scientific consensus holds that human-caused greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions raise global average temperatures. Nuclear energy is among the technologies that could help reduce GHG emissions by providing a low-carbo…

From a budgetary perspective, many farm bill programs that receive mandatory funding are assumed to continue beyond the end of their authorization. That is, they have a continuing baseline beyond the end of a farm bill that gives them built-in future funding if Congress decides that the programs are to continue. Basel…

Carbon dioxide (CO2) pipelines are essential to carbon capture and storage (CCS) systems, promoted by both the Biden and Trump Administrations to reduce emissions of CO2—a greenhouse gas—from power plants and industrial facilities. Approximately 5,300 miles of CO2 pipeline already operate in the United States, primari…

The agriculture title of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (Title I of House-passed H.R. 1) and the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry Budget Reconciliation Text (June 25, 2025) would provide additional funding for many smaller agricultural programs. These provisions are in addition to the proposed…

On May 22, 2025, the House passed the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA; H.R. 1), which provides for budget reconciliation pursuant to Title II of the Concurrent Resolution on the Budget for FY2025 (H.Con.Res. 14). Health coverage provisions—which impact Medicaid, the State Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP),…

Indian energy programs at the Department of Energy (DOE) are carried out primarily by the Office of Indian Energy Policy and Programs (IE) and the Loan Programs Office (LPO). IE funds various activities that assist Indian tribes and Alaska Native Corporations with energy development, energy-related capacity building,…

P.L. 119-21, a 2025 reconciliation law enacted July 4, 2025, established a Medicaid “community engagement requirement” for certain enrollees (beginning January 1, 2027, or sooner at state option) and expanded work requirements to certain Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program participants. This report examines the…

The growth of data centers is projected to substantially increase electricity demand in the coming decades. This In Brief describes how data center owners may benefit from current federal tax credits and deductions aimed at increasing the supply of “clean” electricity (electricity with zero or low greenhouse gas emiss…

On May 22, 2025, the House passed the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (H.R. 1), providing for budget reconciliation pursuant to the FY2025 House budget resolution (H.Con.Res. 14). Title I (“Committee on Agriculture”), Sections 10101 and 10108, of H.R. 1 would increase funds available for certain farm support programs and m…

Milk is perishable, produced daily (i.e., cows must be milked multiple times a day), and challenging to store on the farm. As a result, milk must be transported off the farm every day or every other day and sold regardless of market conditions for milk and milk products (e.g., cheese and yogurt). These unique factors…

Introduction Congress enacted FY2025 appropriations for the U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) through two short-term continuing resolutions (CRs; P.L. 118-83; P.L. 118-158 Division A), one supplemental appropriation for disaster relief (P.L. 118-158 Division B), one full-year CR (Title IV and Title XI of the Full-Year…

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is an independent federal agency established by the Communications Act of 1934 (1934 Act, or “Communications Act”). The agency is charged with regulating interstate and international communications by radio, television, wire, satellite, and cable. The mission of the FCC is t…

Itemized deductions are a type of tax benefit that allow certain taxpayers to reduce their taxable incomes, or the amount of income subject to taxation. Itemized deductions may only be claimed by taxpayers not using the standard deduction, which is the most common deduction in the federal income tax. For tax year 2025…

On May 22, 2025, the House passed the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA; H.R. 1), which provides for budget reconciliation pursuant to Title II of the Concurrent Resolution on the Budget for FY2025 (H.Con.Res. 14). Health coverage provisions, which impact Medicaid, the State Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP),…

Congress passed the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (P.L. 73-291) to create the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in the wake of the stock market crash in 1929 to help restore confidence in capital markets. The SEC is an independent federal regulatory agency responsible for administering federal securities laws…

Section 70302 of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (H.R. 1), as passed by the House of Representatives on May 22, 2025, would limit the authority of federal courts to enforce contempt citations for failure to comply with orders of injunctive relief for which no security was provided. This Legal Sidebar provides backgroun…

Introduction On May 30, 2025, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) released its 2026 Budget Estimates to Congress. The budget includes a Performance Plan for FY2026 (hereinafter “FCC Performance Plan” or “plan”). Congress may be interested in the strategic goals the FCC has set for itself, actions it identified…

Energy and Water Development and Related Agencies appropriations (E&W) bills typically include funding for civil works activities of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) in the Department of Defense, in Title I; the Department of the Interior’s Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation) and Central Utah Project (CUP), in…

On May 22, 2025, the House passed the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (H.R. 1), providing for budget reconciliation pursuant to the FY2025 House budget resolution (H.Con.Res. 14). Title 1 (House Committee on Agriculture) of H.R. 1 would make changes to nutrition assistance, farm support, conservation, and other types of pr…

The Concurrent Resolution on the Budget for FY2025 (H.Con.Res. 14) includes reconciliation instructions for the House Committee on Education and the Workforce (EDW) and the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) to reduce spending within their jurisdictions by at least $330 billion and at le…

On May 22, 2025, the House passed H.R. 1, the One Big Beautiful Bill Act. The version of this budget reconciliation measure agreed to by the House includes four provisions that would amend aspects of the Federal Employees’ Retirement System (FERS), fees collected by the Merit Systems Protection Board (MSPB), and the F…

Congress is currently considering legislation that would modify the federal income tax code, including changes to tax policies affecting nuclear power generation. This Insight describes existing tax credits for nuclear power and briefly discusses proposed reforms in H.R. 1, the FY2025 budget reconciliation bill, as pa…

On May 22, 2025, the House voted to approve H.R. 1, a reconciliation bill that compiled provisions from 11 House committees, pursuant to directives in H.Con.Res. 14. The Committee on Energy and Commerce (“the Committee”) was instructed to submit changes in laws within its jurisdiction to reduce the deficit by not less…

Congress is considering establishing a new form of child savings accounts, also known as child development accounts, as part of reconciliation legislation for FY2025. Many state governments, local governments, and nonprofit institutions have introduced programs that administer child savings accounts. The number of chi…

The Highway Trust Fund is a federal accounting mechanism that receives revenue mainly from transportation-related excise taxes and provides a dedicated source of funding for surface transportation. The Highway Trust Fund has two accounts: the highway account and the mass transit account. Since FY2001, expenditures fro…

PJM is the country’s largest electric grid operator, managing the electricity transmission system for more than 65 million people in all or part of 13 states—Delaware, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Maryland, Michigan, New Jersey, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia—and the Distric…

Federal law generally requires workers to pay individual income taxes and the payroll taxes on their tip income, as on other compensation. Lawmakers are considering making some tip income exempt from the individual income tax, and have introduced other proposals to exempt such income from payroll taxes. This In Focus…

On May 22, 2025, the House passed H.R. 1, the One Big Beautiful Bill Act. That act provides for reconciliation pursuant to Title II of H.Con.Res. 14, the Concurrent Resolution on the Budget for FY2025. Title XI of H.R. 1 contains tax provisions, which are identified as the “tax provisions in the One Big Beautiful Bill…

On May 22, 2025, the House passed H.R. 1, the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, providing for budget reconciliation pursuant to H.Con.Res. 14, the budget resolution for FY2025. Title V (House Committee on Financial Services) of H.R. 1 would limit the budget of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), rescind the rem…

On May 22, 2025, the House passed H.R. 1, the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, providing for budget reconciliation pursuant to H.Con.Res. 14, the budget resolution for FY2025. Title V (House Committee on Financial Services) of H.R. 1 would reduce the cap on funding that the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) could…