Clock Ticking On Jan. 30 Funding Deadline As House Juggles ACA Fight, Discharge Petitions And Stock‑Trading Ban

Sudiksha Kochi|The Hill

4h ago•4 min read

Clock Ticking On Jan. 30 Funding Deadline As House Juggles ACA Fight, Discharge Petitions And Stock‑Trading Ban

The House returns Jan. 6 with a slim timetable to meet a Jan. 30 government funding deadline after only three of 12 appropriations bills have passed. Competing pressures — expiring ACA subsidies, multiple discharge petitions and a push to ban congressional stock trading — have eaten into floor time. Leaders say allocation targets are agreed and staff will draft the nine remaining bills, but with just 12 House legislative days, Congress may need a continuing resolution or risk a shutdown.

With a Jan. 30 funding deadline looming, the House faces a compressed legislative calendar that has many lawmakers warning a government funding battle could erupt if Congress doesn’t act quickly. A two‑week holiday recess, a high‑stakes dispute over Affordable Care Act (ACA) subsidies, and multiple discharge petitions have consumed crucial floor time, leaving only a narrow window to finish appropriations work.

What’s At Stake

To date, Congress has approved only three of the 12 regular appropriations bills needed to fund the federal government. That leaves nine bills outstanding; lawmakers must either enact those measures or pass a temporary continuing resolution (CR) to keep federal operations funded past Jan. 30. Failure to do so would reopen the possibility of another shutdown.

Competing Priorities Are Squeezing The Calendar

Republican leaders are under mounting pressure as ACA premium subsidies are due to expire at the end of the month. Four House Republicans broke with leadership to sign a discharge petition that would force a vote in January on a three‑year subsidy extension — a move that leadership has opposed. If the House passes any subsidy extension, lawmakers expect the Senate to amend it; any amended Senate version would have to return to the House for a potentially lengthy, partisan replay.

Another significant time sink is a push to ban congressional stock trading. House GOP leadership has signaled plans to introduce legislation after pressure from Rep. Anna Paulina Luna (R‑Fla.), while Luna also pursues a separate discharge petition tied to a bipartisan stock‑trading proposal. The debate over this reform is expected to take additional floor time and could complicate scheduling.

Leaders Say Allocations Agreed; Drafting To Begin

On Dec. 20, House Appropriations Chair Rep. Tom Cole (R‑Okla.) said he reached an agreement with Senate Appropriations Chair Sen. Susan Collins (R‑Maine) on remaining funding allocations and that staff would "expeditiously" begin drafting the nine outstanding bills. Cole emphasized a member‑driven, transparent process and said bills would be released in packages with time for review.

“Again, I’m not going to be critical of my colleagues and my leadership for trying to solve a problem I don’t think they created,” Cole said, while stressing his desire to avoid delays in the appropriations process. He also warned that next year’s election calendar will intensify scheduling pressures.

Timeline And Risks

House members return Jan. 6 and will have just 12 legislative days to pass the nine outstanding bills. The Senate will have 15 legislative days in January, though the two chambers will be out of session for separate weeks. That tight timetable, coupled with high‑profile fights, raises the odds that Congress may need to resort to a continuing resolution to avert a shutdown — a short‑term fix opposed by some conservatives.

Some Democrats have signaled they may use the Jan. 30 deadline as leverage if ACA subsidies lapse, arguing they would be more inclined to oppose funding measures that do not address the subsidies. Rep. Juan Vargas (D‑Calif.) said he would support a shutdown if the subsidy dispute is unresolved, calling it unacceptable to let people lose access to affordable coverage.

Despite the squeeze, some Republicans remain optimistic. "I’m not worried about it," Rep. Ronny Jackson (R‑Texas) said. "I think we’ll figure it out." Others, including Rep. Kevin Kiley (R‑Calif.), warned that extended absences from the House reduced the time available to prepare bipartisan appropriations packages.

Possible Outcomes

Lawmakers pass the nine remaining appropriations bills before Jan. 30 — unlikely but possible with intense focus.
Congress approves a continuing resolution to extend funding temporarily while negotiations continue.
A lapse in funding leads to a partial government shutdown if neither side yields on key demands, including ACA subsidies.

The coming weeks will test whether House and Senate leaders can translate allocation agreements into finished bills quickly enough to avoid another funding crisis.