FY 2026 Spending Bill Locks Down $20 Billion for CJS Agencies, Blocks Funds for ATF Gun Rules and DEI Initiatives

This massive appropriations bill sets the budget for the Departments of Commerce, Justice, and Science (including NASA and the National Science Foundation) for the 2026 fiscal year, totaling over $20 billion. It locks in funding for everything from FBI operations and NOAA weather satellites to NASA’s next generation of space exploration. Beyond the sheer dollar amounts, the bill is loaded with dozens of specific rules—or “riders”—that dictate exactly what agencies can and cannot do with the money, effectively turning a budget bill into a policy showdown.

The Budget Breakdown: Where Your Tax Dollars Go

For anyone juggling work and life, the key takeaway is that the core functions of government are funded, often with specific goals attached. For example, the Department of Justice gets a huge slice, including $1.72 billion for the U.S. Marshals Service and $10.1 billion for the FBI. NASA’s science and exploration work is funded to the tune of over $14.5 billion, with $9.7 billion alone dedicated to exploration activities like the Space Launch System. On the Commerce side, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) gets $4.15 billion for operations, which directly impacts everything from weather forecasting to fisheries management.

For everyday people, this means your weather app is still accurate, the FBI is still operating, and the U.S. Trustee Program—which oversees bankruptcies—is funded with $205 million, ensuring the system runs smoothly if you or your business ever need it. The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office is funded entirely by fees, with $4.99 billion allocated, which is a big deal for anyone running a business that depends on intellectual property protection.

The Policy Riders: New Rules for Government

This bill doesn't just fund the government; it also tells it to stop doing certain things. These policy riders are the fine print that can have the biggest real-world impact. They fall into three main categories:

1. The Gun Control Showdown

If you own firearms or follow gun policy, this bill is packed with provisions that severely restrict the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF). The bill blocks the use of funds to enforce several recent ATF rules, including the final rule on “Definition of Frame or Receiver” (Sec. 556), the rule on “Factoring Criteria for Firearms with Attached Stabilizing Braces” (Sec. 560), and the rule defining who is “Engaged in the Business as a Dealer in Firearms” (Sec. 586). Essentially, the ATF is defunded from enforcing several key regulatory changes it has attempted to implement in recent years. Furthermore, the bill prohibits funds from being used for any gun buyback programs (Sec. 594) or for establishing a federal registry of firearms (Sec. 598).

2. Social Policy and Training Bans

Several provisions target internal government policies and training. The bill bans the use of funds for any activities related to Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI), including training, offices, and salaries (Sec. 574, 575). It also prohibits the use of funds to promote or teach Critical Race Theory (CRT) or any training that suggests individuals are inherently racist or sexist based on their race or sex (Sec. 575). For federal employees, this means a significant shift in internal HR and professional development programs. The bill also maintains the strict ban on using federal funds for abortions, except in cases of rape, incest, or life endangerment (Sec. 571).

3. Immigration and Law Enforcement

For the Department of Justice, the bill allocates $844 million for the Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR), which runs the immigration courts. However, it requires the EOIR to establish performance metrics tied directly to judges' evaluations—a move designed to increase case processing speed (Sec. 203). More critically, the bill prohibits the use of funds to pay for legal costs or fees for aliens who entered the U.S. illegally (Sec. 601), and it blocks the DOJ from using funds to implement any policy of automatically closing or dismissing immigration cases based on categories (Sec. 578).

The Real-World Impact: Who Feels It?

For the Small Business Owner: If you depend on intellectual property, the USPTO is fully funded. If you’re involved in international trade, the International Trade Administration receives $440 million to boost U.S. exports and enforce trade rules, including $16.4 million specifically for enforcement against China. This funding directly impacts your ability to sell goods overseas and compete fairly.

For the Tech Worker: The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) gets $980 million for research. Crucially, the bill introduces a mandatory check: any new IT system costing over $100 million requires a formal certification from the Deputy Attorney General that it has strong management controls and fits the DOJ’s overall tech architecture (Sec. 544). This is a direct response to past government IT failures and means more oversight for major federal contracts.

For the Citizen Journalist or Policy Watcher: The bill requires the Departments of Commerce, Justice, NASA, and NSF to submit quarterly reports detailing their spending balances, broken down by original source year. This is a huge win for transparency, making it easier to track exactly where unspent funds are sitting and holding agencies accountable for budget execution (Sec. 507).

Ultimately, this bill is a detailed blueprint for how the government will operate in 2026. While it ensures the lights stay on for essential services, the numerous policy restrictions mean that for many federal agencies, the rules of the road have just changed significantly.