Earmarks are Back

Before a second killing by ICE agents in Minneapolis over the weekend created major objections to advancing increased Homeland Security funding (and could very well lead to the second government shutdown in 6 months), the remaining 6 FY26 appropriations bills were largely on a glidepath to final passage in the Senate. And despite one of the tensest political environments in modern history, the progress on moving 9 out of 12 appropriations bills up to this point is in no small part due to earmarks.

Recall that last spring, congressional earmarks were stripped from the FY25 full-year continuing resolution at the last minute - largely due to objections from Elon Musk – distressing Members of Congress and constituents who spent months preparing and vetting funding requests. As a result, appropriators were quick to announce virtually identical request guidelines for FY26 barely a month after the CR passed, and members advised that the majority of their requests would be carryovers that were scrapped for the previous fiscal year.  

Despite programmatic cuts and a continued conservative agenda of tightening up federal spending, Congress appropriated $16 billion for local projects in FY26 – much of which is now hanging in limbo with the fate of the 6-bill minibus. Although the expectation is that it’s only a matter of time before that funding is ultimately enacted into law.

Fiscal conservatives threatened for months to block appropriations bills unless leadership scaled back the earmarks included within them. So far, only one project has actually been cancelled: funding for social services in Minneapolis – a full circle moment. House Republicans are also reportedly considering allowing earmarks in the Labor-HHS-Education bill for FY27, which are currently only allowed in the Senate.

The simple explanation for this is that earmarks are easy wins. In an increasingly deadlocked legislative landscape where many constituents feel like they’re seeing fewer results from what little legislation does pass, earmarks represent tangible, measurable benefits to local communities – ones that are directly requested by the communities themselves.

With midterm elections approaching in the fall, little progress on major legislation, and notably poor reception to Republicans’ One Big Beautiful Bill, many lawmakers are in dire need of more accomplishments to hold out on the campaign trail. Getting FY26 earmarks over the finish line and having FY27 earmarks tentatively approved by the appropriations committees by this summer are clear solutions to that problem.