Week in Review with Janice Mays - July 24, 2026

Welcome to Policy on Demand's Week in Review. I'm Janice Mays. I want to focus on three big items that came up in my conversations with companies this week. Reconciliation 3. 0, appropriations, and trade. Let's start with reconciliation. The House this week teed up a third reconciliation bill providing $95 billion in mandatory spending for a number of items, but not for tax provisions or cost offsets. The Senate, however, has no immediate interest in this bill. Senate Majority Leader Thune said this week that the Senate would hold the resolution in reserve in case the Senate cannot get 60 votes — for any appropriation bill before October. In order to pass the 3. 0 resolution, House leaders promised to work toward a reconciliation 4. 0 later this year that would focus on spending cuts. So, what's my take on this? As long as there is a reconciliation proposal floating around, pay attention. Now, appropriations. House Republicans acknowledged that Congress will not be able to pass any appropriation measures before the start of the new fiscal year in October. Failure to pass these measures on time could result in another government shutdown. So, the House sent the Senate a continuing resolution extending current funding levels through December 4th, when the Congress will be back in its lame-duck session. Majority Leader Thune also indicated the Senate would need to amend this resolution before moving it and would not consider it right now. Now, there isn't a lot we can do about this. This is an important space to watch, also. Finally, trade. The Trump administration announced 50% tariffs on Canadian imports starting in August. A move that caught almost everyone by surprise. The Trump administration used an old but untested law known as Section 338 to impose these tariffs. In the world of relationships between nations, each act or move can have great impact. And this is no exception. These Canada-specific tariffs raise concerns about the ongoing USMCA negotiations, among other things. Outside of these three big topics, there's a lot going on in and outside of Washington. Nominations, tax guidance, and other legislation we're tracking. On all of these counts, expect some challenges. Thanks, as always, for watching, and have a good weekend. —