Congress Must Pass a Clean Budget with No Poison Pills

Every year, unscrupulous lawmakers try to sneak harmful policies into the must-pass annual spending bills that have nothing to do with funding our government. Known as poison pill policy riders, these measures are little more than special favors for ideological extremists and big corporations. Most poison pills are highly controversial, wildly unpopular, and could not become law on their own merits. Hundreds of organizations have joined together under the umbrella of the Clean Budget Coalition to oppose the inclusion of poison pills and other toxic amendments in the annual spending bills. We’re calling on Congress to pass clean FY 25 bills that fully fund the programs and services we all count on by the March 14th deadline.

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House Republicans have proposed hundreds of poison pills like the ones listed below. All of these measures must be removed from any final spending package.

School Threats - green

CJS Sec. 551 would block a Justice Department memo that protects school administrators, board members, teachers, and staff from threats of violence.

Shock Devices - blue

Agriculture Sec. 722 would shield the one facility in the U.S. that still uses painful electric shock devices as a form of behavioral conditioning on people with disabilities.

Credit Card Late Fees - red

FSGG Sec. 503 would block a rule that caps credit card late fees.

Drag Queens - blue

Defense Sec. 8152 would bar drag queens from participating in military recruitment.

Menthol & Vaping - red

Agriculture Sec. 733 would make it nearly impossible to regulate menthol cigarettes and vaping.

Social Cost of Carbon - blue

Interior-Environment Sec. 454 would block agencies throughout the government from taking into account the costs of carbon pollution in rulemakings and other agency actions.

Listeria - yellow

Agriculture Sec. 756 would impede the FDA from issuing an new rule or guidance to prevent listeria from contaminating our food.

Food Contamination Tracing - blue

Agriculture Sec. 768 would stop the FDA from tracing the origin and prevalence of contaminated food.

ATF Regs - yellow

CJS Sec. 549 would block the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives from issuing new regulations of any kind.

Silica - green

Labor H Sec. 123 would block a rule that protects miners from hazardous silica dust.

DC Traffic - blue

FSGG Sec. 822 would interfere with local District of Columbia traffic laws.

Redistricting Suits - yellow

CJS Sec. 582 would block federal lawsuits challenging illegal state redistricting plans.

Confederate Monuments - blue

Energy & Water Sec. 112 would block the Army Corps of Engineers from renaming civil works projects that commemorate the Confederacy.

Telework - yellow

Defense Sec. 8156 would block regular or recurring telework for any Defense Department employee or contractor.

Direct File - green

FSGG Sec. 113 would block the popular, free Direct File program that lets taxpayers file their annual taxes directly with the IRS.

Red Flag Laws - red

CJS Sec. 568 would block federal laws that allow courts to temporarily remove guns from people who are considered a danger to themselves or others.

Net Neutrality - yellow

FSGG Sec. 524 would block net neutrality protections.

Auto Retail Scams - blue

FSGG Sec. 530 would block a rule to combat scams in auto sales.

Electric Vehicles - yellow

FSGG Sec. 635 would block government procurement of electric vehicles, electric vehicle batteries, charging stations, and infrastructure

DC Concealed Guns - red

FSGG Sec. 826 would allow concealed handguns throughout the District of Columbia and the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority.

Fiduciary Rule - yellow

Labor H Sec. 121 would allow financial advisors to mislead investors saving for retirement with conflicted advice.

FY 25 News and Resources

My Fellow Members of Congress: This Is a Naked Power Grab
U.S. Rep. Rosa DeLauro in The New York Times: February 12, 2025

Negotiations Stall Ahead of Shutdown Deadline as Democrats Slam Trump for Subverting Spending Laws
NBC News: February 4, 2025

Johnson Needs Dems to Pass a Stopgap Spending Bill. Here’s What They Want.
Politico: December 10, 2024

Poison Pills and Political Gridlock: Passage of Government Spending Bills May Bog Down from Project 2025 Riders
Santa Barbara Independent: December 7, 2024

215 Groups Tell Congress to Reject All FY25 Poison Pills
Clean Budget Coalition: November 13, 2024

Republicans Aren’t Waiting for Trump – Project 2025 Starts Now
People’s World: October 23, 2024

More Than 300 Project 2025 Poison Pills in House GOP’s Draft Spending Bills
Clean Budget Coalition: October 22, 2024

House Republicans in Denial That Regular Order Means Clean, Bipartisan Bills
Clean Budget Coalition: September 25, 2024

House GOP Feels Deja Vu as New Funding Fight Ends with No Wins
The Hill: September 25, 2024

What Government Funding Week Will Look Like
Punchbowl News: September 23, 2024

Senate Will Move Stopgap Funding Bill as Government Shutdown Looms
The Hill: September 19, 2024

All Eyes on Johnson’s Next Funding Move
Punchbowl News: September 19, 2024

House Republican Leadership Is Letting MAGA Extremists Risk a Shutdown
Clean Budget Coalition: September 17, 2024

House Republican CR with SAVE Act Poison Pill Is Dead on Arrival
Clean Budget Coalition: September 9, 2024

Four Things That Could Complicate Congress’s Efforts to Avert Shutdown
The Hill: September 3, 2024

FACT SHEET: Trump’s Project 2025 Shaped House Republicans’ Funding Bills
House Appropriations Democrats: August 8, 2024

‘We’re Gonna Take the Reins’: Democrats Bullish on Riders
E&E Daily: August 1, 2024

MAGA Republicans’ Project 2025 Shapes Funding Bills
House Appropriations Democrats: July 23, 2024

House Spending Bill Would Clip FTC’s Reach in MGM Cyber Probe
Roll Call: July 23, 2024

Committee Adds More Riders to House Interior-EPA Bill
Roll Call: July 10, 2024

475 Poison Pills in House Republican Draft Spending Bills
Clean Budget Coalition: July 9, 2024

House Commerce-Justice-Science Riders Would Limit Biden on Guns
Roll Call: July 9, 2024

One Quarter of CJS Spending Bill Is Poison Pills
Clean Budget Coalition: June 25, 2024

Policy Riders to Watch as House Appropriators Mark Up 2025 Spending Bills
Federal News Network: June 12, 2024

House Republicans Attack LGBTQ+ Community in Draft Spending Bills
Clean Budget Coalition: June 11, 2024

GOP’s Fiscal 2025 Spending Bills Heavy on Climate Change Riders
Roll Call: June 10, 2024

Equality Caucus, White House Condemn Anti-LGBTQ Riders in Spending Bill
Washington Blade: June 5, 2024

House GOP Spending Bill Is a Wish List of Deregulation
Investment News: June 5, 2024

Defense Spending Bill Forces Israel Arms Transfers, Nixes Ukraine Aid
Defense News: June 5, 2024

80 Poison Pills in House Drafted Financial Services and General Government Spending Bill
Clean Budget Coalition: June 4, 2024

Democrats Decry ‘Very, Very Harmful’ Riders in Legislative Branch Bill
Roll Call: May 23, 2024

Culture War Riders Are Back in the House’s Draft Military Construction, VA Spending Bill
Clean Budget Coalition: May 21, 2024

Culture Wars Part 2?
Punchbowl News: May 8, 2024

200+ Groups: Congress Should Pass Clean FY25 Spending Bills, Remove Legacy Poison Pills (Release)
Clean Budget Coalition: May 6, 2024

200+ Groups Call for No Poison Pills in FY25 Approps Bills (Letter)
Clean Budget Coalition: May 6, 2024

White House Vows to Repeal GOP-Led Ban on Pride Flags Over U.S. Embassies
Washington Post: March 25, 2024

LWVUS Joins Letter Urging President to Remove Anti-Abortion Weldon Amendment from FY25 Budget
League of Women Voters: February 1, 2024