PASSED: Murray Secures Hundreds of Millions for Transportation & Housing Projects Across WA in Final Appropriations Bills; Boosts Funding for Medical Research, Housing, Child Care & More

In a major victory for Seattle’s biomedical research hubs and Washington families, Senator Murray prevents Trump’s devastating cuts toNIH andresearch into lifesaving cures and treatmentsMurray led efforts to safeguard critical federal funding that underpins Washington state housing and homelessness safety nets
Murray protects Washington transit agenciesfrom the downstream effects of catastrophic House Republican cuts to federal funding for public transit
As Congress’s top advocate for child care, Murray holds firm, secures funding boosts for federal child care and Head Start funding
Overall across 11 funding bills, Murray secures nearly $500 million in Congressionally Directed Spending for WA projects and helps set aside over $5 billion in programmatic funding for Washington state
Washington, D.C. –Today, U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), Vice Chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, led Senate passage of five additional fiscal year 2026 appropriations bills and celebrated major wins for Washington state in the Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies; Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies; Financial Services and General Government; and Defense Appropriations Bills. The bills passed the Senate by a 71-29 vote today.
Throughout negotiations as the top Democrat on the Senate Appropriations Committee, Senator Murray fought to protect the programs and investments that matter most to working families in Washington state, and reject Trump’s draconian proposed cuts and defeated every Republican poison pill rider—protecting investments in public health, education, affordable housing, transportation, biomedical research, and more—while reasserting Congress’ power of the purse.
Senator Murray secured over $121 million in Congressionally Directed Spending (CDS) in this legislation for local, community-based projects across Washington state. This figure is on top of the more than $5 billion Murray secured in direct funding for Washington state in thethree-bill funding packagethat passed the Senate earlier in January. When combining all of the Fiscal Year 2026 funding bills Murray authored and passed, she secured nearly $500 million in Congressionally Directed Spending forWA projectsand has helped set aside over $5 billion in programmatic funding for Washington state. This does not include funding for national programs that will later be allocated on a competitive or formula-specific basis.
A full, searchable list of funded CDS projects Senator Murray secured in this package is availableHERE.
“I keep my promises—President Trump’s budget is in the trash, and an entirely new one is headed to his desk, waiting to be signed into law,”Senator Murray said.
“President Trump tried to demolish the NIH and the work it supports—an attack on Seattle’s world-class biomedical research institutions, and families searching for new treatments and cures for devastating diseases. I fought back and protected that funding so that the lifesaving cancer and vaccine research happening at Fred Hutch and so many other places can continue full steam ahead.“I led efforts to safeguard critical federal funding for Washington state’s housing and homelessness programs from Trump’s attacks because families in our state deserve a roof over their heads.“When House Republicans’ catastrophic cuts threatened to nearly defund federal funding for public transit entirely, I made sure that didn’t happen so that transit agencies like Sound Transit can keep pushing forward with the most ambitious public transit expansion in the country.“Trump wanted to outright abolish the Department of Education—I pressed Congress to find its voice and say NO. And as a proud former preschool teacher, I stood up for parents and kids to secure funding increases for federal child care programs and Head Start—because Congress needs to focus on making life more affordable for working families.“As long as I am at the table, Washington state’s priorities are going to be federal priorities. Even after tough negotiations, these funding bills better reflect our values—not Trump’s. I made certain that Congress–not Trump–had the final say on how our taxpayer dollars get spent.”
Highlights, key provisions, and funding Senator Murray secured in these5 additionalfunding bills are below:
Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies Bill
“At the start of Trump’s term, I met with top clinical researchers in Seattle and across our state, worried that the President might permanently undo decades of scientific progress by obliterating NIH—by passing this bill, we’ve outright rejected those efforts, securing a major victory for scientific progress and the groundbreaking biomedical research that powers so much of Western Washington’s economy,”Senator Murray said.“Just a year ago, I had been hearing from educators across our state, worried about the complete decimation of the Department of Education. And while the damage Trump has done to federal investments in education can’t be overstated, I managed to rally bipartisan support in Congress to continue to fund and support so much of the critical work that the Department of Education does to support students, families and our local schools and universities here in Washington state.
“I was also able to secure tens of millions in Congressionally Directed Spending for community health centers and hospitals, Tribal health care facilities, early education programs, and so many other important community projects across Washington state that will help set kids and families up for success.
“As costs rise across the board in Donald Trump’s America, I fought hard to protect funding for Pell Grants and secure increased resources for Head Start, LIHEAP, and other programs essential to helping working families get by. Importantly, this bill keeps America at the forefront of lifesaving biomedical research—rejecting Trump’s catastrophic proposed 40 percent cut to NIH and blocking this administration from capping indirect cost rates, slashing NIH research grants, and other cruel efforts to destroy lifesaving research and families’ hope for new treatments and cures.”
Senator Murray secured:
Senator Murray also secured $34.986 million for 26 CDS projects in the bill, which are listedHERE.
A full summary of the bill Senator Murray negotiated is availableHERE.
Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies Bill“Washington state’s affordable housingand homelessnesscrisis was top of mind for me throughout negotiations—I worked hard to secure a nine percent funding boost for housing programs, and I made sure this bill rejected Trump’s devastating cuts and put new guardrails in place to stop his administration’s sabotage of homelessness assistance grants. We must do a lot more at every level of government to address the housing affordability crisis, but this bill takes important steps in the right direction,”said Senator Murray.
“House Republicans’ efforts to essentially zero out public transit funding was simply a nonstarter as long as I was going to be at the negotiating table. When House Republicans’ catastrophic cuts threatened to nearly defund federal funding for public transit, I made sure that didn’t happen so that transit agencies like Sound Transit can keep pushing forward with the most ambitious public transit expansion in the country.”
On $82 million for bus rapid transit in Spokane:
“I’m proud to be bringing home $82 million for bus rapid transit in Spokane—this funding will help people get to where they need to go, whether that’s for work, school, or the doctor’s office. When we build connections through public transit, we’re growing economic opportunity for small business owners and workers alike,”Senator Murray said.On $100 million to build light rail for the I-5 Bridge Replacement:“My commitment to the I-5 Bridge replacement project is unshakeable, and I am proud to secure $100 million to support light rail for this critical project—building light rail here will greatly improve connectivity between Vancouver and Portland, delivering a major win-win for Southwest Washington and Oregon,”Senator Murray said.
On investing in transportation across Washington state:“Through this legislation, I was able to secure key infrastructure investments across our state, including $25 million for a new bridge program aimed at addressing critical needs in Adams and Grant Counties, alongside funding for so many other important local projects. I worked hard to secure new federal funding streams for Washington State Ferries, new resources for emerging pollutants and stormwater management to protect our salmon, and funding for aviation research, where Washington state is leading the way. And I made certain we boosted investments to retain and hire more air traffic controllers—I’ll always have their backs in Congress to ensure we keep people safe while flying—and critical aviation safety personnelto maintain oversight of Boeing,”said Senator Murray.
“These are investments that really matter to our communities—I will never stop fighting to make sure Washington state gets its fair share of federal funding.”
For housing, Senator Murray secured:
For transportation, Senator Murray secured:
Overall in the Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies Bill, Senator Murray secured $81.229 million for 29 CDS projects, listedHERE.
A full summary of the bill Senator Murray negotiated is availableHERE.
Financial Services and General Government Bill
“This bill invests in our small businesses, increases funding for public defenders who make sure people’s Sixth Amendment rights are protected, and supports critical economic development programs that rural communities and Tribes in Washington state rely on,”said Senator Murray.“I’m excited to be bringing home in this bill $30 million for a new National Archives facility in the Seattle area, so it can better preserve Washington state’s rich Tribal and local history for generations to come. I was also able to secure $2 million for the Northwest Native Chamber for technical assistance for small businesses and to support Tribal entrepreneurship, and over $1 million to increase the number of child care providers in Southwest Washington—which is critical to addressing the region’s child care crisis.”
Among many other things, Senator Murray secured:
Senator Murray also secured $5.034 million for 3 CDS projects in the bill, which are listedHERE.
A full summary of the bill Senator Murray negotiated is availableHERE.
Defense Bill
“This compromise legislation provides a much-needed pay boost for our servicemembers and invests in critical infrastructure and repairs at the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard in Washington state—I will always do everything in my power to support our servicemembers and military families,”said Senator Murray.
Among other things, Senator Murray secured in the legislation$186 million for accelerated dry dock infrastructure upgrades at the Puget Sound Naval Shipyardand Intermediate Maintenance Facility. This funding will ensure that our submarines and aircraft carriers will remain combat-ready and that future maintenance schedules remain on schedule.
The legislation provides a3.8 percent pay raise for servicemembers,increased funding for allowances permanent change of station costs and funding for bonuses and new resources to help military families make ends meet. The bill provides funding to help survivors of sexual assault and prevent sexual assault in the military—a longtime priority for Senator Murray—and funding to reduce suicide in the military.
The bill Senator Murray negotiated also provides key oversight of Child Development Centers (CDCs) and directs the Department to review its procedures related to child abuse investigations to ensure full transparency with military families. Senator Murray also secured $15 million for additional medical research to help better support our military families. This includes research for infertility associated with military aviators and aviation support personnel.
A full summary of the bill Senator Murray negotiated is availableHERE.
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