House unlikely to pass all spending bills before break

The House will continue to try to forge ahead on appropriations for the remaining two weeks before the August recess, although it will fall short of House Speaker Denny Hastert's goal of passing all 13 annual spending bills.

Next week, the House is expected to take up the Energy and Water, District of Columbia, and Foreign Operations appropriations bills. The House also will return to trade issues, when it votes on extending so-called Normal Trade Relations to China. There will be no votes Wednesday so that members can attend a memorial service in California for the late Rep. George Brown, D-Calif.

That leaves a full plate for the House the following week, with the Veterans Affairs-Housing and Urban Development and Commerce-Justice-State appropriations bills, managed care legislation, and an encryption bill scheduled.

A spokeswoman for Majority Leader Dick Armey, R-Texas, said the House would likely take up the controversial Labor-Health and Human Services spending bill in September. Meanwhile, the Senate is likely to carry over consideration of its version of the Commerce-Justice-State appropriations bill into next week. And the Senate will take up its tax cut bill around midweek.

The following week, the Senate is expected to deal with more appropriations bills and a possible conference report on the tax bill.