This is the last week of work for the Senate before recess, with members returning September 14. The House began its August break late last month and is set to return August 31, which leaves the Senate to clear a crowded list on its own.

Government Funding:

Over the weekend, Senate appropriators announced a bipartisan agreement on a stopgap funding bill known as a continuing resolution. It would extend current funding levels through December 11, notably a week later than House Republicans proposed in their recently passed measure, and the hope is to pass it before the chamber goes home at the end of the week.

One contentious provision, which held up a deal last week, would temporarily freeze a federal rule requiring grants to be approved by senior political appointees. Senate Appropriations Chair Susan Collins (R-ME) cited concerns about "its potential to politicize grants and harm small, rural communities, families, and biomedical research." Because the freeze would last only as long as the funding itself, it sets up another fight in December. It may also draw pushback from Republicans, as it would restrict the President's authority to review grants. Sen. John Kennedy (R-LA), a senior appropriator, said on NBC's "Meet the Press" that he would be inclined to oppose the bill and expected others would as well.

Two other pieces of the CR are worth watching. The first extends surface transportation funding through December 11, preventing a lapse for highway, rail, and transit systems ahead of a September 30 deadline. A House measure that would reauthorize the programs has been stalled since May, and the Senate has yet to release its own version.

The second is an omission. The CR does not extend the advance appropriations provided by the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, which expire October 1. Those amounted to approximately $36.8 billion per year, which included $100 million in supplemental funding for the LIHEAP program.

Online Safety Bill:

Away from funding, the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee on Wednesday holds a long-awaited markup (10 a.m., 253 Russell) on five bills, including the Kids Online Safety Act (S 1748). The measure would require social media platforms to be designed to mitigate harms like anxiety, depression, and compulsive use. It is a bipartisan rival to the KIDS Act (HR 7757), which the House passed 267 to 117 in June.

Farm Bill 2.0:

Late last week, Senate Agriculture Chairman John Boozman (R-AR) released the text of the Agricultural Act of 2026 and scheduled a markup for Thursday. Three fuel provisions stand out.

First, it would make E15 legal to sell year-round nationwide, giving 15 percent ethanol blends the same break from summer smog rules that E10 has always had. Second, it would end the hardship waivers that let small refineries out of their blending obligations, replacing them with an automatic cut for refineries running 75,000 barrels a day or less, capped at what each plant produced between 2023 and 2025. Third, and most important for anyone selling a blended fuel, EPA would have to hand the excused gallons to the remaining refiners rather than let them disappear, minus the first 500 million.

That last piece keeps most of the demand for ethanol and biodiesel intact and puts the cost on larger refiners. Beyond the fuel provisions, the bill would restore blending credits small refineries used up in 2016 through 2018, keep the Biodiesel Fuel Education Program alive through 2031, and give states an extra year before they begin paying part of the cost of SNAP benefits. Whether any of it advances comes down to arithmetic. Boozman needs at least one Democratic vote to move the bill out of a committee split 11 to 11 with Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY) absent.

There are no other committee meetings of interest this week.