Big-Ticket Legislation is Moving, but is it Enough to Pass?

Headlines would tell you that Washington, DC is gridlocked with very little moving. However, several recent developments are telling a different story.

The Farm Bill, a bill that authorizes all of the U.S. Department of Agriculture and must pass every five years (although it has now been pushed back multiple years), just passed the House with a bipartisan vote. The Senate is likely to release its version soon.

Meanwhile, the House Transportation & Infrastructure Committee is scheduled to hold a markup on its surface transportation reauthorization bill that authorizes all Department of Transportation programs.

In the House, where bills tend to be much more partisan and with a very slim majority, any movement on bipartisan big-ticket legislation is always a cause for celebration.

In both cases, the Senate is working on its own version of these bills. On top of the Farm Bill and surface transportation reauthorization, the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee and Energy and Natural Resources Committee are working together on a broader permitting package.

We are quickly entering campaign season, when very little – unless necessary – gets done in Congress. House and Senate Republican leadership have a tight timeline on what gets floor time and can be done soon. This upcoming month is a critical time for Members of Congress to start negotiating and figuring out what makes it to a vote this Congress.

While none of these bills are guaranteed to be signed into law, or even to make it to the House or Senate floor, it sends a positive signal that Congress can work together on important must-pass legislation.