Alston & Bird’s Legislative & Public Policy Group previews the week ahead highlighting anticipated federal legislative, regulatory, and political activity, and key upcoming actions in Congress, the Administration, and relevant policy arenas.
Administration
- The Federal Reserve’s next policy meeting will occur Tuesday and Wednesday. The central bank’s governors may announce changes to U.S. interest rates following the session.
- President Trump pushed back on the need for artificial intelligence (AI) regulations after technology company CEOs said a slowdown in AI development is needed. Speaker Mike Johnson said AI developers, not Congress, are responsible for making products safe. AI leaders may host a congressional briefing on safety this week.
- The Trump administration is not planning military intervention as the Iran-backed Houthis make advances in Yemen, though officials say that could change if Red Sea shipping lanes are threatened.
- Vice President JD Vance will address House Republicans during a conference meeting Tuesday. Today marks 50 days until the midterm elections.
House
- The House returns for a one-week session before recessing until the midterm elections. Speaker Mike Johnson canceled the remaining two weeks of session. The Lindsey O. Graham Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act, the Ratepayer Protection Pledge, and the Protecting Taxpayers from Health Care Fraudsters Act are among the bills the House is expected to consider this week.
Senate
- Senate Republicans released a revised version of cryptocurrency legislation, the Clarity Act, over the weekend. A cloture vote on the bill is set for Tuesday, though Democratic support remains uncertain. The Senate will pivot to the Protect College Sports Act if the cryptocurrency legislation does not advance.
- Minority Leader Chuck Schumer plans to force another floor vote on an Iran war powers resolution this week.
- The Senate Agriculture Committee will hold another vote on the farm bill this week. The bill previously failed to advance out of committee because of Republican absences.
Key Hearings
September 14, 2026
- House Judiciary Committee: Examining Healthcare Markets: Fraud and Competition
September 15, 2026
- House Energy & Commerce Committee: Examining Legislative Proposals to Reform Medicare Provider Payment and Bolster Health Care Cybersecurity
- House Appropriations Committee: Oversight Hearing – The Economy Act
- House Oversight Committee: Unequal Treatment: Addressing the Drivers of Unaffordability for Oral Chemotherapy
- Senate Finance Committee: Hearing to Consider the Nominations of Gerard Klomp, of Utah, to be Deputy Secretary of Health and Human Services; James Gadwood, of Maryland, to be Chief Counsel for the Internal Revenue Service and an Assistant General Counsel in the Department of the Treasury; Ge Bai, of Virginia, to be an Assistant Secretary of Health and Human Services
September 16, 2026
- House Science, Space, and Technology Committee: Balancing Biotechnology Innovation and Biosecurity: Securing U.S. Leadership in a Global Race
- House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party: Import Controls: Tools to Counter the CCP’s Industrial Policy and Supply Chain Threats
- Senate Health, Education, Labor, & Pensions Committee: Nominations of Chris Klomp to be Deputy Secretary of Health and Human Services, Nicole Saphier to be Medical Director in the Regular Corps of the Public Health Service and Surgeon General of the Public Health Service, and Timothy Westlake to be Assistant Secretary for Mental Health and Substance Use
- Senate Special Committee on Aging: Half the Country, Zero Hearings: Meeting the Moment to End the Menopause Care Gap in America
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