Analysis of the Final FY 2026 LHHS Appropriations Bills for Federal Science Agencies

Following a brief partial government shutdown, the House of Representatives passed the latest fiscal year (FY) 2026 funding package containing the final budgets for dozens of federal agencies and departments. The package, which comes on the heels of enactment of an earlier omnibus in January (see COSSA’s coverage), includes the Labor, Health and Human Services, Education (LHHS) appropriations bill, funding the National Institutes of Health, Department of Education, and other agencies, and four other appropriations bills: the Department of Defense appropriations bill, Financial Services appropriations bill, National Security and Department of State appropriations bill, and the Transportation, Housing and Urban Development appropriations bill.

As has been widely reported, the delay in final passage of this package was the result of Congressional Democrats’ concern over recent events unfolding in Minneapolis and calls for reforms to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS); the DHS appropriations bill was included in the original version of the spending package, which held up consideration. Congressional leaders and President Trump agreed to remove the DHS bill from the omnibus to pass the other appropriations bills. The DHS bill is now the only FY 2026 appropriations bill left to be completed.

With the passage of the latest funding package, the FY 2026 appropriations process is nearly complete (aside from DHS funding). Federal science agencies now have their budgets for the fiscal year that began on October 1, 2025.

Like we saw with the passage of the earlier omnibus bill that funded the National Science Foundation (NSF), Census Bureau, Department of Justice, and other agencies, the final outcome for federal science agencies under the LHHS bill is a largely positive story. While some agencies will see their budget decrease this year, when compared to the levels proposed by the Trump Administration last year the final numbers represent a significant win. For example, the National Institutes of Health receives a small, 0.9 percent increase in the final FY 2026 bill even though the President originally proposed a 40 percent cut to the agency.

The report accompanying the final bill explains that any directives to federal agencies included in the earlier House (H. Rept. 119-271) and Senate (S. Rept. 119-55) reports apply to the final agreement unless noted otherwise. You can see these past directives in COSSA’s analyses of the earlier House and Senate LHHS bills.

Now that the FY 2026 appropriations process is in the books, attention will soon turn to the FY 2027 budget. The Trump Administration is expected to release its budget request sometime this spring and Congress will start holding hearings to discuss funding for next year.

Read on for details of the FY 2026 final appropriations for the National Institutes of Health, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, Institute of Education Sciences, International Education and Foreign Language Studies programs, and the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

The bill text and accompanying reports are available on the Senate Appropriations Committee website.

Stay tuned to COSSA’s coverage for the latest developments.