119-HR-5342 Journalist Public Summary
119 · HR 5342 Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2026
House FY2026 Commerce-Justice-Science spending bill that funds DOJ, Commerce, NASA, NSF, and related agencies while adding numerous policy riders on firearms rules, immigration, DEI/CRT, climate/NOAA actions, and other executive policies; reported in the House on September 12, 2025, it now awaits full House floor action, Senate consideration, and reconciliation before becoming law.
Headline Summary
A one-year spending bill for FY2026 that funds the Departments of Commerce and Justice, NASA, NSF, and related agencies—and adds wide-ranging policy limits on firearms regulations, immigration policy, climate/NOAA actions, DEI/CRT initiatives, and other executive directives.
What It Does
Sets agency budgets and operating rules for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2026, across major science, justice, and commerce agencies. Highlights include examples such as: NASA Exploration ($9.716B), Space Operations ($4.150B); FBI salaries and expenses ($10.100B); NSF Research and Related Activities ($6.373B); NOAA Operations, Research, and Facilities ($4.152B) and Procurement/Acquisition/Construction ($1.590B); NIST Scientific and Technical Research and Services ($0.980B); International Trade Administration ($0.440B); Bureau of Industry and Security ($0.303B). It also makes program rescissions, directs CHIPS Act allocations, and sets transfer/reprogramming guardrails.
- Attaches numerous policy riders. Examples: bars funding to implement several recent ATF firearms rules or related enforcement; blocks use of funds for federal firearms registries and buyback programs; restricts NICS entries based solely on VA fiduciary determinations.
- Limits or blocks funding for DEI/CRT training or offices; prohibits certain ESG-related activities.
- Restricts DOJ actions related to immigration (e.g., categorical administrative closures, legal representation for certain aliens in removal, some settlement payments) and narrows use of funds regarding protests at school boards, religious institutions, and other civil-liberties-adjacent areas.
- Constrains climate- and ocean-related actions at NOAA (e.g., certain vessel speed rules, Rice’s whale critical habitat proposal, some climate programs) and pauses approvals of some offshore-wind incidental take authorizations pending a GAO study.
- Blocks implementation of certain Biden administration directives (e.g., Executive Orders on gun violence and COVID-19 vaccine mandates for federal employees/contractors; OSTP’s 2022 public-access memo) and several EEOC/ATF regulations or guidance documents.
- Specifies dozens of program-by-program earmarks and community project funding items and sets reporting, transfer, and oversight requirements across accounts.
Why It Matters
This bill sets core funding for federal law enforcement, courts-related grants, economic development, trade enforcement, patents, weather and fisheries, space exploration, and basic research—programs that touch public safety, disaster preparedness, innovation, and local economies. The extensive policy riders could significantly shape how agencies regulate firearms, manage immigration cases, run equity/climate initiatives, and conduct science policy during FY2026.
Who’s For It
- House Republican appropriators and members emphasizing fiscal control, agency oversight, and curbs on what they view as regulatory overreach (ATF, DOJ, NOAA, EEOC, OSTP).
- Law-enforcement–focused advocates highlighting Byrne JAG, COPS hiring, anti-opioid programs, and crime-victim support as public-safety priorities.
- Some industry and research stakeholders who support specific funding lines (e.g., NASA, NSF, NIST, CHIPS allocations) and riders that reduce compliance burdens or delay contested rules.
Who’s Against It
- House Democrats and civil-rights, immigration, and gun-safety advocates objecting to riders that limit DOJ/ATF actions, restrict immigration-related legal aid or case management practices, and narrow civil-rights enforcement or DEI activities.
- Environmental and ocean-conservation groups opposing limits on NOAA rules and whale protections, and pauses affecting offshore wind authorizations.
- Open-science and academic stakeholders concerned about blocking OSTP’s 2022 public-access policy, and science-funding advocates wary that riders could complicate research operations despite sizable topline investments.
- Some bipartisan or cross-pressured members who may support key funding (e.g., NASA/NSF/NOAA/DOJ grants) but oppose specific policy conditions—raising prospects for negotiations or a narrower compromise.
What’s Next
Status: Reported in the House on September 12, 2025. Next, the bill faces House floor debate and amendments, followed by Senate consideration of its own version and a conference to resolve differences. Because FY2026 began on October 1, 2025, agencies covered by this bill will operate under whatever short-term funding Congress enacts until a final agreement is signed by the President.
Key Numbers (selected)
Selected example figures from the bill text.
Discussion