FY26 Congressionally Directed Spending

Thank you for your interest in applying for congressionally directed spending (CDS) through Senator Warner’s office.

Senator Warner and Senator Kaine are now accepting requests for Virginia CDS projects for Fiscal Year 2026 (FY26). Please use this form to submit a request. Senator Warner and Senator Kaine are accepting applications jointly. Interested parties only need to submit one form on either of the Senators’ websites.

This application is based of FY25 guidance. FY26 guidance will be posted once it is available. The application may change pending change in the guidance.

A deadline will be announced on the Senator’s website in the coming weeks. Please make every effort to submit applications as soon as possible.

Please read the instructions below in full and reach out to Approps@warner.senate.gov and Kaine_Approps@kaine.senate.gov with questions.

• Purpose: The purpose of this application is to identify high-impact projects in Virginia that can reach completion with one-time assistance from the federal government.
• Senate Rule XLIV: Any CDS request submitted to the Appropriations Committee must comply with this rule.
• Eligible Accounts: The FY26 CDS Form is subject to change pending instructions from the Senate Appropriations Committee, including a list of accounts that are eligible for CDS. A specific list of the CDS accounts in the FY25 process is available here.
• Reforms: The Appropriations Committee instituted the following reforms for recent previous fiscal years:
• A 1 percent cap on discretionary spending for congressionally directed spending items;
• Ban congressionally directed spending items to for-profit entities;
• Require Senators to post online their congressionally directed spending item requests, as well as their financial certification disclosures attesting that they do not have any financial interest in any of the items requested; and
• The Committee will require the Government Accountability Office to audit a sample of enacted congressionally directed spending items and report its findings to Congress.

It is important to note that the budgetary constraints currently facing the federal government, as well as the Committee’s parameters on congressionally directed spending, limit the opportunities for community project funding. Submission of this application does not guarantee that funding will be appropriated.

Senator Warner’s FY25 requests are available here.