With summer recess over, Congress faces a long to-do list

But the biggest action item for Congress is addressing the government funding deadline and the threat of a shutdown if no action is taken. U.S. House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries and Chuck Schumer, who leads Senate Democrats, sent a letter to their Republican counterparts last week that said the Sept. 30 deadline “will be upon us shortly.”

“It is therefore imperative that we immediately meet upon our return to Congress next week to discuss the need to avert a painful, unnecessary lapse in government funding and to address the health care crisis Republicans have triggered in America,” they wrote.

The “health care crisis” the duo mentioned is yet another issue facing lawmakers: whether to extend Affordable Care Act subsidies expiring at the end of the year that have helped millions of people afford coverage. It is estimated that if the subsidies go away the number of uninsured people nationally would increase by 3.6 million, including 440,000 in Georgia.

Republicans hold a narrow majority in both chambers, but there is disagreement within the party about how to proceed. Some Republicans from states with large rural populations have said they agree with Democrats that the subsidies should be extended.

Over the break, the U.S. Department of Justice released a large number of files from its investigation of convicted sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein. But little new information was shared.

U.S. Reps. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., and Ro Khanna, D-Calif., have pledged to move forward by forcing a vote on the House floor that would compel the release of more Epstein documents.

“The survivors deserve justice, and the public deserves transparency,” Khanna said in a news release.

And if that weren’t enough, Congress is also hoping to move forward with passing full-year appropriations bills and the National Defense Authorization Act, a military policy package that has been renewed each year since 1961.

Here’s a detailed look at what awaits their return.

Congress’ to-do list

Avoid government shutdown

Congress authorized funding for government agencies through Sept. 30, and it is likely members will need to pass stopgap funding in the form of a continuing resolution to avoid a shutdown. A dozen appropriations bills to fund the government for a full year starting Oct. 1 are still being debated, and the House and Senate have different versions of each.

Lawmakers will need to decide how long agencies will be funded under the continuing resolution and whether provisions tied to national defense, immigration or health care will be added. Those conversations could cause the bill to rise or fall in popularity with Republicans and Democrats.

Support from Democrats will be crucial, because hard-line conservatives tend to oppose continuing resolutions. The bill could be put on the floor using fast-track procedures requiring a two-thirds majority. The bill is also subject to the 60-vote threshold in the Senate, which means Democrats’ votes are needed there, too.

Epstein files

Georgia Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene is among the Republicans who have pledged to support Massie and Khanna in their effort to force a vote on the release of the investigative files related to Epstein’s case.

Massie and Khanna are trying to overcome objections from House Speaker Mike Johnson and other Republicans who, at President Donald Trump’s urging, have stopped pushing for the release of Epstein files. The duo would need more than half the House members to sign a discharge petition to get their legislation on the floor.

If all Democrats sign the petition, plus two more Republicans besides Massie and Greene, it would be successful. Massie and Khanna say they already have that support lined up.

CDC concerns

The White House fired CDC Director Susan Monarez last week after less than a month on the job, replacing her with Jim O’Neill, one of Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s top deputies. Several other top CDC leaders resigned in protest.

Through her attorneys, Monarez said she was forced out for refusing to approve “unscientific, reckless directives.”

The disarray at the top of the public health agency comes just weeks after a gunman opened fire outside its Atlanta offices, killing a DeKalb County police officer responding to the scene.

Kennedy will appear before a Senate committee Thursday, and he is likely to face tough questions from both sides of the aisle about CDC layoffs, employee safety and recent COVID vaccine decisions.

Appropriations bills

Ideally, the government would be funded on an annual basis through the passage of 12 appropriations bills for the fiscal year starting Oct. 1. That rarely happens on schedule, but lawmakers have promised to keep working in hopes of getting legislation approved before the December recess.

The Senate has passed three of the bills, and the House has signed off on two. The rest are pending in committee. But the House and Senate versions of each of these proposals have differences that will need to be ironed out.

National Defense Authorization Act

This is the one bill Congress considers a must-pass each year, given its 63-year streak of annual reauthorization.

The bill tends to be popular among Democrats and Republicans, who champion the military and defense spending it allocates. Georgia lawmakers in general support the package, given the large military presence and more than a dozen installations in the state.

Efforts by House conservatives to add language related to diversity, equity and inclusion or the eligibility of transgender service members could make the bill more controversial.

The Senate took procedural measures before the recess to vote on its version of the NDAA as soon as Tuesday. The House proposal is still in committee.