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Senators are pushing for changes to the NDAA after crash investigators warned the legislation would undo key safety reforms stemming from a collision between an airliner and Army helicopter.

The Commerce Committee recently approved nominees for leadership roles in the secretary’s office and key safety agencies, setting up confirmation votes as early as this month.

With less than a month before the end of the calendar year, congressional leaders have not announced a path forward for approving a fiscal 2026 transportation funding measure.

The so-called GAIN AI Act would require chipmakers to give American customers first dibs on their powerful AI chips before selling in China and other arms-embargoed countries.

Senate Majority Leader John Thune urges lawmakers to focus on long-term funding, a move that could preclude another shutdown by dispelling a recent habit of extending short-term measures.

The last congressional hearing that featured the top executives of Ford, GM and Stellantis (formerly Chrysler) was in late 2008, when financial and automotive crises were hitting the economy.

The record 43-day shutdown caused financial stress for federal workers who went without paychecks, stranded scores of travelers at airports and generated long lines at some food banks.

The Transportation Department and the FAA have said they relied on data, including reports from pilots of controller responsiveness, to make the decision to reduce flights.

The House has not been in legislative session since Sept. 19. That's when it passed a short-term funding patch to keep the government open when the new budget year began in October.

A record-setting 42-day U.S. government shutdown is on a path to end as soon as Nov. 12 after the Senate passed a temporary funding measure backed by a group of eight centrist Democrats.