Even though committees have completed work on all twelve FY’25 spending bills, the House of Representatives is unlikely to pass most of them anytime soon.  This means that contractors and their government customers can expect a delayed start to new projects in the next fiscal year, though how long a delay is unclear.  All bills, except for the Energy and Water appropriations measure, were pulled from the House calendar last week and again this week, meaning that the earliest those bills would see action is in September.  House appropriators further indicate, though, that they may not bring the remaining measures to a vote at all. House Appropriations Chair Tom Cole (R-Okla.) told Bloomberg News that he would be surprised if leaders tee up more votes shortly before the September 30th deadline.  While Cole attributed this to Senate delays, the bigger reason is that the House Republican leadership is concerned that they don’t have the votes necessary to pass spending measures as many of their members campaign for reelection on cost-cutting platforms.  Although this means a delay for final appropriations, contractors can take some comfort in knowing that the House is prepared to go to conference on all spending measures right now.  This increases the chances that final FY’25 appropriations could come before Christmas.  While Cole had consistently said that this is the goal, he recently stated, “…I think the winner of the November election is going to decide whether they want to finish the bill(s) this year or not.”  A Republican victory for the White House or the Senate and an increase in Republican House seats could mean that final spending measures won’t be completed until calendar year 2025.  Such an outcome could also lead to overall spending reductions.  Stay very tuned.