Senate approves more than $180 billion in 2026 federal funding with first group of bills

The Senate on Friday night approved more than $180 billion in federal funding for fiscal year 2026, after it passed the first three of its annual discretionary funding bills ahead of its August recess.

The bills allocate funding for the Department of Veteran Affairs, the Department of Agriculture, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), military construction, rural development and legislative branch operations.

The votes come after the Senate Appropriations Committee on Thursday advanced legislation that amounts to over $1 trillion in federal discretionary funding. Both chambers of Congress have to pass the same 12 federal funding bills by Oct. 1 to avoid a government shutdown. The Senate Appropriations Committee has advanced eight bills already.

The tranche of legislation passed in two parts with high bipartisan support, according to The Hill. The first vote, which passed on an 87-9 split, approved funding for military construction, veteran affairs, agriculture and the FDA. 

The second passed in an 81-15 split for legislative branch operations.

Misty Severi is a news reporter for Just The News. You can follow her on X for more coverage.