The Big Picture
Congress is returning from its annual August recess with an enormous list of unfinished business. Lawmakers have only 16 legislative days before the pre-election recess begins. That is an extraordinarily short window for a government facing major fiscal, national security and domestic policy questions.
Election Cycle Dominates the Fall
The 2026 midterm elections will determine all 435 seats in the House and 35 Senate seats. That means every member of the House and one-third of the Senate will be focused on getting re-elected. Once lawmakers leave Washington for the campaign trail, the opportunities for Congress to debate, amend and pass legislation decrease greatly until after the midterm elections on Tuesday, November 3, 2026.
Government Funded, For Now
On September 1, 2026, the U.S. House passed the U.S. Senate’s version of a Continuing Resolution (CR) to fund the federal government at current spending levels through December 11, 2026. The CR included several line-item funding additions, but nothing with major impact on housing policy specifically.
ROAD Funding Not Included
Because CRs generally maintain funding levels consistent with the prior budget measure, new funding needs—particularly funding for components of the 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act (H.R. 6644), which became law this past July—was not included and will likely wait until HUD and other agencies begin the regulatory/implementation process for the law.
Track the Latest with NAA’s ROAD Resources Hub
Must-Pass Legislation
The must-pass annual National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) remains top-of-mind on the legislative agenda. The House has already passed its version, while the Senate has yet to bring its proposal version to the floor. The two chambers will eventually have to reconcile their differences and pass the NDAA before the start of 2027.
There are also other pieces of legislation that have been waiting for congressional action, including veterans' legislation and the long-delayed Farm Bill.
NAA’s Advocacy
With a growing list of unresolved priorities and the possibility of House control shifting to Democrats, the current Congress will likely have to use the post-election lame duck session to dvance must pass bills and other legislative proposals that may not be politically viable in the next Congress.
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