Appropriations subcommittee advances FY2026 agriculture-FDA bill with cuts to WIC, rural housing and debate over FDA staffing

Chairman Harris opened a House Appropriations subcommittee markup Tuesday to consider the Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration and related agencies appropriations bill for fiscal year 2026, saying the subcommittee’s discretionary allocation for the measure is $25,500,000,000 — a $1,100,000,000 (4.2%) cut from fiscal 2025 enacted levels. "In a setting of ongoing $2,000,000,000,000 deficits, that modest constraint is necessary," Chairman Harris said as he presented the measure.

The bill proposes targeted increases and notable cuts. It provides $1,150,000,000 for the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS); $90,000,000 for the ReConnect broadband program; $7,600,000,000 in appropriations for the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) while rescinding $100,000,000 from existing carryover balances; and a 10% cut to the WIC cash value voucher (CVV) in the near term. For the Food and Drug Administration, the bill lists $3,200,000,000 in direct appropriations and expects user fees to bring FDA’s total to about $6,800,000,000.

Supporters framed the bill as a pro-farmer, fiscally responsible package. Chairman Harris said the measure "reflects a clear conservative commitment to fiscal responsibility while ensuring that America’s farmers, ranchers, and rural communities remain a top priority." He described provisions that would strengthen animal and plant health responses, maintain funding for agricultural research including the Agriculture and Food Research Initiative, and add the Secretary of Agriculture to CFIUS for agricultural transactions.

Opponents said the bill would reduce services that poor and rural Americans rely on and undercut public health. Ranking Member Bishop called the bill "not up to the task" and warned that cuts to rural housing and community facilities would "make it harder for Americans to afford basic needs." Representative DeLauro and other Democrats argued the proposal cuts WIC and other nutrition programs at a time of high food costs, harming women, infants and children and small farmers who supplied local food-purchase programs.

A central area of contention was WIC. The bill would hold WIC at a $7.6 billion appropriation level while rescinding $100 million of unspent carryover from prior awards and instructing a phased reduction of the CVV. Democrats proposed amendments to increase and index the CVV to inflation; Representative Rosa DeLauro offered an amendment to adjust the CVV for inflation and keep benefit levels closer to National Academies guidance. That amendment drew protracted debate but was incorporated as amended during the markup process.

Rural development and housing funding also drew sustained criticism. Multiple members, including Representative Bishop and Representative Pingree, described cuts to rural housing, community facilities and water/wastewater grants as direct attacks on small towns that lack tax bases to fund major infrastructure projects. Bishop warned the bill would force some small communities into choices between higher utility rates or degraded public services.

Members also spent significant time on FDA staffing and food safety. Several Democrats and some Republicans raised alarms about reported departures at FDA and the possible effect on infant formula oversight, food safety inspection, and drug review. Representative Torres offered an amendment to prohibit funds that would permit further reductions in staff who perform infant-formula safety work; sponsors said the change was necessary after reports that technical experts were among staff furloughed or dismissed. The chair and the subcommittee staff said FDA had designated infant-formula work as mission-critical and that the agency is addressing gaps, but members pressed for clear protections.

Manager’s amendment and amendments: The committee adopted a bipartisan manager’s amendment that included changes and report language negotiated by both sides. The amendment was presented as a package of bipartisan items and was approved by the subcommittee. During the amendment phase, members offered a series of standalone amendments to change funding or policy. Several of those drew roll call votes. Notable outcomes included the adoption of an amendment related to the WIC CVV (as amended in committee) and the rejection of multiple amendments to restore larger amounts of rural development or water/waste grants as drafted on the floor of the markup.

Lawmakers repeatedly returned to program-specific examples during debate — local food purchase assistance contracts used by farmers and food banks, water projects in small towns, and P25 radio upgrades for regional law enforcement — to illustrate the real-world effects of line-item decisions. On hemp, specialty crops and industrial hemp regulation, supporters said the bill closes the 2018 farm bill’s commercialization loophole for intoxicating cannabinoid products while protecting bona fide hemp businesses.

What comes next: The subcommittee approved the measure and will send its recommendation to the full Appropriations Committee. Members repeatedly said the bill will continue to be amended in the House process. Several members urged bipartisan negotiations to restore programs they said promote food security and rural resilience.

Ending: As the markup progressed, the hearing room often turned to detailed line-item and report-language fights that historically shape the final package. Members on both sides framed the dispute as a test over priorities — whether fiscal restraint should drive modest program reductions or whether greater investment in nutrition, rural infrastructure and food safety should prevail. The subcommittee adopted the manager’s amendment and advanced the bill amid continued disagreement over WIC, rural housing, FDA staffing and other measures.

Votes at a glance

- Manager’s amendment (bipartisan package of report and bill language additions): adopted by the subcommittee (voice vote as reported during markup).

- Amendment by Rep. Rosa DeLauro (adjust CVV/WIC levels to inflation; as amended in committee): adopted in committee (see provenance for debate excerpts).

- Degree amendment by Rep. Cindy Henson (offset to WIC increase by rescinding unobligated balances from the IRS/IRA enforcement fund): adopted as an offset to support WIC-related changes (recorded vote taken during markup).

- Multiple amendments to restore larger rural development/water/waste grants and housing lines (offered during markup by Rep. Bishop and others): several were debated and multiple votes failed to exceed the majority threshold; some proposed restorations were not adopted on recorded votes.

- Amendments to restrict transfers of personally identifiable information to outside entities and to protect FDA infant-formula staffing: debated; restrictions on data transfers and a number of privacy/security proposals were not adopted on recorded votes; an amendment to protect FDA infant-formula staffing was offered and debated but not agreed to on the floor of the subcommittee.

This report summarizes action and debate during the subcommittee’s markup; it does not describe the final shape of any measures that will leave the full Appropriations Committee or the House. The record below links to the portions of the transcript where the measure was introduced and where the markup concluded.