The U.S. House of Representatives has passed the Senate amendment to H.R. 7148, the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2026, by a vote of 217-214. Congressman Cliff Bentz (OR-02) supported the measure, which provides funding for several major government departments and programs.
The legislation allocates funds to the Department of Defense, Financial Services and General Government, Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, National Security, Department of State and Related Programs, as well as Transportation, Housing, and Urban Development. This bill completes work on eleven out of twelve appropriation committees for the 2025-2026 fiscal year. The remaining bill for Homeland Security has been passed by the House but is currently held in the Senate while negotiations continue between the White House and Senate Democratic leadership regarding immigration enforcement.
Congressman Bentz highlighted that this year’s appropriations process was more comprehensive compared to previous years under Speaker Pelosi. Under Speaker Johnson and Appropriations Chair Tom Cole (R-OK), a committee-led approach called “regular order” was used. According to Bentz’s office, this method allowed budgets and spending to be reviewed openly and inclusively.
For Oregon specifically, estimates suggest that between $16 billion and $22 billion from this legislation will go to the state; overall spending in the bill totals about $1.18 trillion.
Bentz released a statement following passage: “The House has spent the last several months working through a bipartisan, bicameral process to finish our appropriations work and fund the government in a member-driven, district-focused way. This is what a return to regular order looks like, and it ensures that Congress is fulfilling its constitutional duty to fund the government responsibly and transparently. While work remains to finalize FY26 funding for the Department of Homeland Security, I am confident that continued discussion and negotiations between the White House and congressional leadership will allow Congress to complete the appropriation process.”
Cliff Bentz has represented Oregon’s 2nd district in Congress since 2021 after succeeding Greg Walden (https://bentz.house.gov/about). Before serving in Congress he was part of both chambers of Oregon’s legislature (https://www.congress.gov/member/cliff-bentz/B001303). Born in Salem in 1952, Bentz lives in Ontario at age 71. He graduated from Eastern Oregon University with a BA in 1974 before earning his JD from Lewis & Clark College three years later.
