A $72 billion Republican budget reconciliation bill designed to provide three years of advance funding for ICE and U.S. Border Patrol stalled after failing to secure a Senate floor vote last Friday, effectively ensuring it will miss President Trump’s June 21 deadline. Senate Republicans deadlocked over whether to place restrictions on the Department of Justice’s controversial new “anti-weaponization fund” within the filibuster-proof legislation. However, a recent ruling by a Democrat-appointed federal judge may have unexpectedly provided congressional Republicans with an escape route.

A lawsuit against the $1.77 billion fund prompted Virginia-based Judge Leonie Brinkema to issue a temporary restraining order, halting the DOJ’s plans until at least June 12. This legal pause gives Senate Republican leadership a chance to convince wary holdouts that the fund is legally doomed, which could unlock the votes required to advance their $72 billion package. Still, deeper friction remains; both parties are dealing with internal revolts over a slate of upcoming bills, led by the fast-approaching expiration of a controversial federal surveillance program.

Congress punted on a long-term FISA Section 702 reauthorization due to data privacy disputes, passing a brief extension through June 12. Critics argue the surveillance tool violates constitutional rights by letting intelligence agents search intercepted communications belonging to U.S. citizens without a warrant. Another legislative bottleneck involves the 21st Century ROAD Housing Act, which was sent back to the Senate after the House loosened its rules. The House rolled back restrictions on private equity firms converting single-family homes into permanent rentals, arguing that strict regulations would destabilize the market and displace existing tenants.

With only ten senators opposing its initial passage, the 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act is expected to face strong Senate resistance following the House’s changes.

Alongside this housing dispute, Congress will try to advance the long-delayed, bipartisan Farm Bill and a $580 billion federal highway package. Lawmakers are also set to tackle the SECURE Data Act; a piece of legislation framed as a data privacy protection measure.

Even with an urgent legislative backlog, House leaders have scheduled no votes until Wednesday. According to the Congress.gov calendar, both chambers of the 119th Congress have spent over twice as much time on vacation or recess than in Washington as of May 30, 2026. The House has held just 74 session days against nearly 170 recess weekdays. Similarly, the Senate has recorded 79 session days alongside nearly 160 weekdays away from the floor.