Weekly Update 8/31/2026
Weekly Update 8/31/2026 Capitol Advocacy Partners
President and Administration:
Mail ballot delivery restrictions take effect as litigation continues: State election officials preparing for November face a new federal condition on how ballots move through the mail. A federal judge in Massachusetts lifted an order last week that had blocked the U.S. Postal Service from carrying out an executive order signed in March restricting mail voting, after the Supreme Court found challenges premature. Under the plan, the Postal Service would not deliver mail ballots in states that decline to share voter data with the agency, and would deliver only ballots meeting certain specifications, and review…
Beef import pause strains support among agricultural producers: Cattle producers in several states are pushing back on a federal move meant to bring down grocery prices. The administration approved a temporary lift on tariffs for 300,000 metric tons of imported beef beginning in September, and is expected to announce rules making it easier for ranchers to process their own meat and sell directly to consumers without U.S. Department of Agriculture inspections. The White House said the action addresses short-term supply while the domestic cattle herd, now at a multi-decade low, is…
Court allows White House ballroom construction to continue on standing grounds: A preservation group's challenge to a major federal construction project failed on procedural grounds rather than on the merits. The Supreme Court granted an emergency request in a 5-to-4 decision, blocking lower court rulings that halted aboveground work on the White House ballroom. The unsigned opinion held the National Trust for Historic Preservation likely lacks standing, and explicitly declined to rule on whether the project is legal, stating offense, disagreement, or distaste is not a concrete and…
Congress:
Shutdown deadline would move to December under bill facing House vote: Federal grant applicants would get a temporary reprieve under the spending measure the House is set to take up this week. The Senate's bill, negotiated with Democrats, would reset the Sept. 30 appropriations deadline for Dec. 11, extend the deadline to reauthorize lapsing surface transportation authorities, and temporarily block the White House from finalizing its proposal to put political appointees in charge of approving federal grants. House leaders plan to move the bill under suspension of the rules…
California:
Two education bills clear the California Legislature ahead of deadline: Staffing shortages and weak math outcomes are pushing California toward looser credentialing rules and earlier assessment mandates. Lawmakers last week sent Gov. Gavin Newsom AB 2490, which would allow people with less than three years of substitute teaching experience to obtain emergency credentials and work in a classroom for up to 70 days, up from a 30-day limit in general classrooms and 20 days…
Bid to add a check on state takeovers of district finances: School districts facing insolvency could answer to a different authority under a proposal that must clear the California Legislature by Aug. 31. A coalition led by county superintendents wants the president of the State Board of Education to sign off before the elected state superintendent takes over budgeting for financially troubled districts, a step current law allows without outside approval. Over 40 county offices of education and…
Cap and invest revenues set up a squeeze on transit, water, and wildfire programs: California lawmakers reached an agreement late on Aug. 28 through amendments to budget trailer bills AB 193 and SB 193 that sets a priority order for transit, wildfire, clean water, and housing programs drawing from the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund, though actual amounts will depend on permit auction revenues. The deal retains the $1 billion high-speed rail appropriation and the June budget's $1.25 billion Cal Fire…
Cost growth limits gain enforcement power in California: Hospitals and health plans that outspend state cost growth targets will eventually pay for it, though not for several years. The Office of Health Care Affordability board voted last week to approve a framework allowing fines of up to 125 percent of the amount by which an organization exceeds it…
Youth online safety pressure builds through courts and the Legislature: School hours and bedtime would become off limits for minors on two major platforms under a tentative agreement announced last week. Meta settled with nearly all states, including California, that would limit minors to two hours daily on Instagram and Facebook, block access between midnight and 6 a.m., hide like counts, ban beauty filters, and let minors turn off algorithmic feeds, with tighter limits if competitors…
Education:
Proposed rule would expand authority to end education grants early: Multiyear awards would carry far less certainty under regulations the U.S. Department of Education proposed last week. The rules would let the department end grants for convenience, remove any obligation to continue multiyear funding, cut later-year award…
Court limits new conditions on teen pregnancy prevention grants: A federal judge last week blocked the Trump administration from applying new conditions to Teen Pregnancy Prevention Program grants, ruling that the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) could not impose conditions that Congress did not intend or that were unreasonable or unexplained. The decision blocks the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services from applying new Teen Pregnancy Prevention Program criteria that required an alignment review, screening out diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts and support for gender-affirming care…
Federal pressure mounts on district gender identity and parental notification policies: Districts nationwide are being pressured to disclose student gender-identity information to parents through both agency enforcement and congressional oversight. The U.S. Department of Education's Student Privacy Policy Office reached a resolution agreement last week with Topeka Public Schools, which agreed to rescind guidance that barred schools from informing parents, stop creating gender support plans, and use preapproved Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) training. Two other Kansas districts refused…