Washington: Congress returns Monday for lame-duck session facing December 11 funding deadline

The US Congress returns on Monday, November 9, for a lame-duck session after the midterm elections, with the most pressing task to pass government funding before a temporary measure expires on December 11 and parts of the federal government shut down.

The December 11 funding deadline

The temporary funding measure approved earlier this year runs out on December 11. Congress must pass new funding legislation or extend the temporary measure before then, or parts of the federal government will shut down. This is the final session before the new Congress is seated — the 120th Congress is scheduled to take office in the first days of January 2027. A lame-duck session is the stretch between the election of a new Congress and the start of its term.

Monday's agenda: nuclear bills and permitting reform

The House meets Monday at noon for morning hour and 2 p.m. for legislative business, with votes postponed until 6:30 p.m.; the Monday suspension calendar includes nuclear-energy bills, among them the Nuclear REFUEL Act (H.R. 3978), and the Veterans' Compensation Cost-of-Living Adjustment Act of 2026 (H.R. 8552). The Senate returns Monday at 3 p.m. on the motion to proceed to H.R. 2347, the vehicle for the permitting reform bill, with a cloture vote at approximately 5:30 p.m.

Jeffries: a “hard yes” on impeaching Hegseth

House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries said on Sunday that he is a “hard yes” on supporting an impeachment resolution targeting Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth. No timetable for a vote on the resolution had been announced as of Sunday.