House GOP Leaders Prepare for Accelerated Legislative Schedule
House Republican leaders are gearing up to dive back into work next week, aiming to catch up after a lengthy government shutdown that lasted six weeks. With the end of this fiscal standoff approaching, House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-Louisiana) shared with Fox News Digital that members will face a brisk schedule to tackle Republican priorities this term.
“We intended to adjust the schedule to compensate for the shutdown and the numerous bills that were supposed to be addressed in October but weren’t,” Scalise mentioned in a Tuesday night interview.
Next week’s focus will include legislation to ease federal regulations on liquefied natural gas (LNG), alongside plans to enhance refining capabilities, aiming to mitigate rising energy costs.
Moreover, legislators will likely vote on measures targeting D.C. This includes a bill enforcing mandatory pretrial detention for those charged with violent crimes, addressing concerns over the pretrial release and detention policies there. Another proposed bill seeks to eliminate local regulations that, according to Republicans, create unnecessary obstacles for police departments.
Next week’s agenda also features largely symbolic resolutions against socialism in America. Lawmakers are expected to extend their working hours, moving away from their typical daily schedules in Washington, with votes slated for the evening—when many normally depart for other obligations.
Scalise emphasized that the legislative week will now encompass five days, from Monday to Friday, instead of the usual four. This changes allow House committees to have more opportunity to conduct hearings and introduce bills, something that hasn’t occurred at the Capitol since mid-September.
“We’re going to keep this pace for the next several weeks to make up for the time lost when everyone returned to their districts,” he noted.
A bill poised for passage on Wednesday would resolve the government shutdown by extending most federal spending for the fiscal year 2026 until a January 30 deadline. It also would fund three of Congress’ twelve annual spending bills for that fiscal year.
Still, finalizing the remainder of the spending agreements could prove challenging for both the Senate and House appropriations committees.
“There are nine bills left, and we hope to finalize them in the upcoming weeks,” Scalise added, emphasizing the effort House Appropriations Committee Chairman Tom Cole (R-Oklahoma) and his team will dedicate to the task.
Additionally, Congress must find common ground on the annual defense policy bill, known as the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). “We’re in negotiations. I think we’re making progress on the NDAA,” Scalise remarked.
He mentioned that Republicans will also be focused on developing a new farm bill to establish agricultural policies and the Highway Bill, to outline infrastructure policies across the nation.
“Many of these bills were active in committee but didn’t receive significant national attention during the shutdown,” Scalise explained. “We’re set to consider several important items aligned with our America First policy, and we’ll be increasing our floor time to ensure we complete everything by year-end.”
However, before tackling these major priorities, the House must first approve the Senate’s bipartisan bill to conclude the government shutdown. When asked about having the votes for this, Scalise expressed, “I genuinely hope so.”
“I believe that members of Congress are eager to fully resume work in the House, with many actively addressing the fallout from the Democrats’ handling during the shutdown,” he concluded.
