PSW Weekly Round-Up - 5/4

Legislative Update

House and Senate. Congress is in recess until the week of May 11. Before leaving on April 30, lawmakers moved forward on several key pieces of legislation, including a budget resolution, funding for Homeland Security programs, a farm bill, and an extension of certain government surveillance authority.

FY 2026 Budget Resolution. After holding the vote open for over five hours to negotiate on pending legislation, House Republican leadership was able to pass the FY 2026 budget resolution at 10:30 p.m. April 29 on a party-line vote of 214-212, with one member voting “present.” The resolution, which had been approved 50-48 by the Senate on April 23, provides reconciliation instructions to fund ICE and border protection programs for three years.

Now that the budget resolution has cleared both chambers, two Senate committees – Homeland Security and Judiciary – will draft the reconciliation language. Judiciary is likely to hold a markup the week of May 11, but it is unclear whether Homeland Security, chaired by Senator Rand Paul (R-Ky.), will formally act on the measure. If Judiciary reports reconciliation language, Homeland Security doesn’t have to. Full Senate consideration, and a lengthy vote-a-rama, could take place the week of May 18. Senate approval will clear the way for a House vote as Republicans aim to complete action before Congress recesses May 22 for the Memorial Day break.

DHS Funding. In a far less dramatic vote, the House agreed by voice vote April 30 to suspend the rules and approve the Senate-passed bill providing funding for all Homeland Security programs except for ICE and border protection. Final approval by the House came after the Trump administration advised lawmakers in an April 28 memo that DHS would “soon run out of critical operating funds, placing essential personnel and operations at risk." When the President signed the bill later on April 30, it ended a 76-day lapse in funding for DHS programs.

Farm Bill. The House also acted last Thursday to approve a five-year farm bill but not without extended intra-party Republican negotiations over ethanol and pesticides. The most prolonged battle was sparked by farm state Republicans who wanted the farm bill to include language providing for year-round sales of E15 ethanol fuel. At the end of the day, the E15 provision was not included in the bill, but House Speaker Mike Johnson reportedly promised that the House would vote the week of May 11 on a standalone version of the ethanol measure.

FISA. Facing an April 30 deadline to extend the authorization for Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA), both chambers cleared legislation on April 30 extending Section 702 for 45 days, until June 12. Final action came after the House on April 29 passed a three-year extension and attached an unrelated measure that would ban the Federal Reserve from issuing a digital currency. That approach was unacceptable to the Senate, which acted the next day on a voice vote to pass a 45-day extension without the central bank digital currency provision. The House then took up the Senate-passed bill and approved it under suspension of the rules, 261-111.

Executive Actions of Note

On April 30, President Trump signed an executive order directing the Treasury Department to create by Jan. 1 the TrumpIRA.gov website, which workers who don’t have access to an employer-sponsored retirement plan can use to enroll in a savings plan. The website will list financial institutions that offer IRAs with low costs and no minimum contributions and accept the Saver’s Match program. The Saver’s Match, which was established by the SECURE 2.0 legislation signed by President Biden and is effective Jan. 1, uses Treasury funds to match 50% of contributions, up to $1,000 for individuals and $2,000 for married couples subject to income limitations.

• Promoting Efficiency, Accountability, and Performance in Federal Contracting - April 30, 2026
• Promoting Retirement-Savings Access for American Workers by Establishing TrumpIRA.gov - April 30, 2026
• Presidential Permit: Authorizing Bridger Pipeline Expansion LLC to Construct, Connect, Operate, and Maintain Pipeline Facilities at the International Boundary at Phillips County, Montana, Between the United States and Canada - April 30, 2026
• Imposing Sanctions on Those Responsible for Repression in Cuba and for Threats to United States National Security and Foreign Policy - May 1, 2026

Tariff Update

Whiskey. Following King Charles’ visit to the U.S., President Trump said in a social media post on April 30 that the U.S. would no longer impose a 10% tariff on whiskey, including Scotch, from the United Kingdom.

Autos. In another social media post, President Trump said on May 1 that he would increase the 15% tariff on cars and trucks from the European Union to 25%. The tariffs, which are imposed under Section 232 of the Trade Act, will be increased, the President said, because the EU was not moving fast enough to ratify a trade deal with the U.S. No further details, including an effective date, have been released.

Political Update

Upcoming Primaries. House and Senate incumbents in Ohio are not facing strong opposition in Tuesday’s primaries, and former Senator Sherrod Brown is expected to win the Democratic race to challenge Senator Jon Husted (R) in November. In Indiana’s primaries on Tuesday, Democratic Rep. André Carson and Republican Rep. Jim Baird have aggressive primary challenges.

In Louisiana, the May 16 Senate primaries will be held as scheduled, but Gov. Jeff Landry (R) signed an executive order April 30 delaying the House primaries until July 15 or a time designated by the state legislature. The delay, which followed the April 29 Supreme Court decision that the state’s current House maps are unconstitutional, will allow the legislature to redraw the congressional maps. In the Republican Senate primary, polling shows a tight race among Senator Bill Cassidy, Rep. Julia Letlow, and State Treasurer John Fleming. If no candidate receives over 50% of the vote, the top two vote-getters will advance to a June 27 runoff.

In Alabama, primaries are scheduled to be held May 19. However, following last week’s Supreme Court decision, Gov. Kay Ivey (R) on May 1 called a special session of the legislature to redraw the congressional maps and set a new primary date. The special session starts today and aims to wrap up in five days. Alabama is under a court order to keep its current map until after the 2030 census, but the governor is preparing the legislature to act quickly in case the Supreme Court approves Alabama’s emergency motions to negate the earlier court order.

In Georgia, Gov. Brian Kemp (R) said the May 19 primaries will be held as scheduled because early voting has already started. However, the Governor said “it’s clear that [the Supreme Court decision] requires Georgia to adopt new electoral maps before the 2028 election cycle.”

In Tennessee, Gov. Bill Lee (R) said May 1 he was calling a special session that begins tomorrow to review the state’s congressional maps before the Aug. 6 primaries.

www.psw-inc.com