Washington — The Senate Appropriations Committee on July 31 approved a bill that would maintain current funding for OSHA and the Mine Safety and Health Administration through fiscal year 2026.
The legislation would also allocate more than $363 million to a depleted NIOSH. That’s around five times more than the Trump administration’s proposal, finalized in June.
OSHA and MSHA
Under the bill, OSHA would receive $632.3 million for FY 2026, which begins Oct. 1. The administration proposed $582.4 million for the agency, a 7.9% budget cut.
OSHA’s Voluntary Protection Programs would get at least $3.5 million, while the Susan Harwood Training Grant program would receive nearly $12.8 million. For its fifth consecutive budget, the Trump administration has sought to cut the Harwood program.
In its accompanying report, the committee expresses concerns over the prevalence of opioid use in the workplace, smoke-related health issues for workers, and workplace violence in health care and social services.
The bill would give $387.8 million to MSHA, around 10% more than the administration has proposed ($348.2 million).
Also in the report: “MSHA shall fully and effectively enforce the Final Rule Reducing Miners’ Exposure to Coal Dust and should not use any funds to weaken or eliminate the Final Rule Lowering Miners’ Exposure to Respirable Coal Mine Dust.”
NIOSH
The bill would allocate $363.8 million to NIOSH – a $1 million increase from FY 2025. The administration has proposed $73.2 million for the agency, including $66.5 million for mining research. The remainder would go to the Firefighter Cancer Registry ($5.5 million) and the National Mesothelioma Virtual Bank ($1.2 million). These three divisions received the same funding in FY 2025.
The Trump administration has reportedly cut hundreds of workers at the agency, including those in the Respirator Approval Program at the National Personal Protective Technology Laboratory.
The House, which started its annual August recess on July 23, has yet to publish its appropriations bill for the safety agencies or schedule a markup.
National Safety Council CEO Lorraine M. Martin applauds the committee’s approval of the bill and urges the House and full Senate to approve these funding levels, “which are necessary to keeping America safe.”
