Illustration: Aïda Amer/Axios
The Senate passed its FY26 Ag-FDA spending bill late Friday, 87-9, as part of a last-minute appropriations push before the August recess.
Why it matters: The Senate bill, passed in a package with the Military Construction-Veterans Affairs bill, would keep the FDA's funding relatively flat compared to FY25 levels, at $7 billion.
- Floor passage is also a significant step forward in the appropriations process, which has been lagging due to the focus on the reconciliation package.
State of play: The House version would fund the FDA at $6.8 billion, which means there won't be much to reconcile between the two chambers.
- Though the Senate is pushing to get appropriations bills to the floor, it's still possible that there could be a government shutdown in September if Republicans and Democrats can't agree on a funding deal.
- It remains likely that a short-term continuing resolution will be needed to fund the government after Sept. 30.
