White House Sends Preliminary FY 2026 Budget Request

White House Sends Preliminary FY 2026 Budget Request

The Administration released a “skinny” budget request for Fiscal Year 2026 (FY 2026) on May 2, 2025, which is mostly just an outline.

According to the skinny budget, President Trump will request $8.5 billion for the Commerce Department, a $1.7 billion reduction from the FY 2025 enacted level.

The charts showing significant changes from the 2025 enacted levels for the Commerce Department (pp. 26-27) do not list or reference the Census Bureau.

Overall, the Administration states it “…is proposing base non-defense discretionary budget authority $163 billion-22.6 percent-below current-year spending, while still protecting funding for homeland security, veterans, seniors, law enforcement, and infrastructure. Over 10 years, this restraint would generate trillions in savings, necessary for balancing the budget. At the same time, the Budget proposes unprecedented increases for defense and border security.”