Analyses / Procedural Viability Check / 119 · S 1926 Procedural Viability Check

119-S-1926 DC Insider Procedural Viability Check

119 · S 1926 Reducing Waste in National Parks Act

park Public Lands and Natural Resources
Procedural read

Republicans control both chambers; Senate ENR is chaired by Mike Lee; the White House rescinded the prior DOI plastics phase‑out. S. 1926 drew a Dec. 9 National Parks Subcommittee hearing but lacks GOP buy‑in, would need 60 votes, and runs against administration policy. Interior-Environment is on a CR through Jan. 30, 2026, offering a theoretical rider window, but leadership and committees are unlikely to carry it. Composite viability: 2/5. [1]Senate Republican Conference — Barrasso Announces Senate GOP Leadership for the…[2]Wikipedia — 119th United States Congress[3]U.S. Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources — Heinrich, Lee Announce…[4]Office of Sen. Steve Daines — Daines Chairs Senate National Parks Subcommittee…[5]U.S. Department of the Interior — RESCINDED: SO 3407—Department‑Wide Approach t…[6]CRS via Congress.gov — Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies: Overview of…

2/5
Composite Viability
Analyzed as
DC Insider
Published
10 Dec 2025
Updated
10 Dec 2025
Tags
procedural-viability · parks · plastics
Unvetted
01 · Section

Procedural Viability Check — S. 1926 (Reducing Waste in National Parks Act)

Bottom line: low odds as a stand‑alone; slim chance as a messaging amendment or a blue‑slip for negotiation, not enactment, in this Congress. Composite score: 2/5.

  • Institutional context: GOP trifecta sets the floor math and agenda. Thune leads a Republican Senate; Johnson holds the gavel in a narrowly Republican House. [1]Senate Republican Conference — Barrasso Announces Senate GOP Leadership for the…[2]Wikipedia — 119th United States Congress[7]CNBC — Mike Johnson elected House speaker after Trump backs Republican
  • Committee terrain: Senate ENR is chaired by Mike Lee; the National Parks panel is chaired by Steve Daines, who ran yesterday’s hearing. That alignment is not hospitable to this policy. [3]U.S. Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources — Heinrich, Lee Announce…[4]Office of Sen. Steve Daines — Daines Chairs Senate National Parks Subcommittee…
  • Executive posture: DOI’s 2022 plastics phase‑out (SO 3407) was rescinded on May 20, 2025 (SO 3430). The bill cuts against current administration policy, raising veto/OMB opposition risk. [5]U.S. Department of the Interior — RESCINDED: SO 3407—Department‑Wide Approach t…
  • Status: Introduced June 2, 2025 and referred to Senate ENR; the National Parks Subcommittee held a hearing on December 9, 2025; no CBO estimate posted. [8]Congress.gov (Library of Congress) — S.1926 - Reducing Waste in National Parks…
  • Calendar/vehicles: Interior‑Environment for FY2026 is under a CR through January 30, 2026—an available but unlikely vehicle for a policy rider. [6]CRS via Congress.gov — Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies: Overview of…
Rubric Factor Assessment Score (0–5)
Chamber of Origin Senate bill with a hearing—but under GOP control and no evident Republican co‑sponsors; committee gatekeepers are skeptical. 2
Vehicle Type Standalone authorizing bill; not plausibly reconciliation‑eligible; no natural must‑pass hook absent being stapled to Interior‑Environment. 1
Senate Threshold Would require 60; majority leadership has no incentive to burn floor time on it. 1
Committee Path ENR (Lee) and National Parks (Daines) control the pen; hearing held but markup/reporting prospects are weak. 2
Must‑Pass Potential Could be offered as a rider on Interior‑Environment or parks packages, but leadership likely strips it. 2
Budget Scorekeeping Policy direction to NPS; Congress.gov lists no CBO score to date; negligible offsets leverage. 3
Calendar Math Year‑end is closed; next window is the Jan. 2026 CR/omnibus round—crowded docket with higher‑priority trades. 2
Composite Viability
2/5
  1. If it moves at all, it will be as a messaging amendment in the ENR parks package or as a narrowly drafted directive (report language) in Interior‑Environment—more likely to survive in the Senate than in a House‑Senate conference.
  2. Watch the Interior‑Environment CR/omnibus talks ahead of the January 30, 2026 deadline; if leadership trades start including discrete parks policy riders, the ask would need to be watered down to signage/refill‑station language to be remotely acceptable.
  3. Absent GOP co‑sponsorship and explicit buy‑in from ENR majority staff, expect the bill to stall after the hearing with no markup this session.
Sources cited
  1. [1] Barrasso Announces Senate GOP Leadership for the 119th Congress Senate Republican Conference
  2. [2] 119th United States Congress Wikipedia
  3. [3] Heinrich, Lee Announce Subcommittee Assignments for 119th Congress U.S. Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources
  4. [4] Daines Chairs Senate National Parks Subcommittee Hearing Office of Sen. Steve Daines
  5. [5] RESCINDED: SO 3407—Department‑Wide Approach to Reducing Plastic Pollution U.S. Department of the Interior
  6. [6] Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies: Overview of FY2026 Appropriations CRS via Congress.gov
  7. [7] Mike Johnson elected House speaker after Trump backs Republican CNBC
  8. [8] S.1926 - Reducing Waste in National Parks Act (All Information) Congress.gov (Library of Congress)

Discussion