Before leaving town, Congress sent the President bills on identity-theft help, billion-dollar overruns and satellite alerts

Congress cleared a batch of bills in late September before leaving Washington for the campaign season; The Lobby, an independent congressional newsletter, reports both chambers are out until Nov. 9. Here is where key bills stand, checked against Congress.gov on Oct. 5, 2026.

Now law — Kay Hagan Tick Reauthorization Act (S. 2398): Signed Sept. 30, 2026, as Public Law 119-118. It reauthorizes through fiscal 2030 the CDC’s work on vector-borne diseases (illnesses spread by ticks, mosquitoes and similar pests): a national strategy, grants for regional centers of excellence, and agreements with state, local and tribal health departments. https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/senate-bill/2398

On the President’s desk — Improving Social Security’s Service to Victims of Identity Theft Act (H.R. 5345): Requires the Social Security Administration to give anyone whose Social Security number was misused a single point of contact, a trained team that tracks the case to completion. It passed the House Dec. 1, 2025, passed the Senate by unanimous consent Sept. 17, 2026, and was presented to the President Sept. 29. https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/house-bill/5345

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On the President’s desk — Billion Dollar Boondoggle Act (S. 766): Requires the Office of Management and Budget to collect and report yearly on federally funded projects that are more than five years behind schedule or at least $1 billion over their original cost estimate. The House passed it by voice vote Sept. 16; it was presented to the President Sept. 29. https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/senate-bill/766

Cleared Congress Sept. 30 — Mystic Alerts Act (H.R. 7022), which provides for wireless emergency alerts to reach phones by satellite, and the Chiricahua National Park Act (H.R. 6380), which redesignates Arizona’s Chiricahua National Monument as a national park and protects tribal cultural and religious sites there. The Senate passed both by unanimous consent without amendment after earlier House passage. https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/house-bill/7022 and https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/house-bill/6380

Passed the Senate only — Protect College Sports Act of 2026 (S. 4668): approved 77–22 on Sept. 28; it still needs House action. https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/senate-bill/4668

What happens next: Once a bill is presented, the President has 10 days, not counting Sundays, to sign or veto it. Track any bill at https://www.congress.gov .

This Notice Nearby publisher-desk brief was prompted by The Lobby newsletter sent to publisher@noticenearby.com on Oct. 5, 2026; bill status and descriptions come from Congress.gov and Congressional Research Service summaries. It is not a legal notice and not Legal Publication. Photo: the west front of the U.S. Capitol, by Noclip, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons (resized).