The Senate gavels in Monday afternoon and continues debate on the FY 2010 Transportation-HUD appropriations bill (H.R. 3288), legislation that would fund programs within the Departments of Transportation and Housing and Urban Development during the fiscal year beginning Oct. 1, 2009. The bill provides a total of $67.7 billion in discretionary funding, $1.2 billion below the administration's request and $1.12 billion below the House-passed level.

With less than three weeks remaining in the current fiscal year (FY 2009), and the Senate completing work on only four FY 2010 appropriations bills, it is all but certain that Congress will be forced to pass a stop-gap funding measure -- called a continuing resolution or CR -- that would continue funding federal departments whose respective FY 2010 appropriations bill has not been enacted. Look for this year's first CR to be unveiled later this month. A so-called "omnibus" appropriations package incorporating several -- and possibly all -- of the pending spending bills may also move at some point, but it is too early for House and Senate Democratic leaders to make a final decision on whether to adopt this strategy.

Finance Chairman Max Baucus (D-MT) is preparing to officially unveil his part of the Senate's health care reform bill this week, followed by Finance Committee votes next week. Baucus released an outline of his proposal on Sept. 8. His mark will represent the final piece of five health care overhaul proposals drafted by three House committees and two Senate committees.

Get this week's Senate committee schedule here. A daily listing of House committee action can be found here.