Why It Matters
The University of Illinois System is lobbying on H.R. 9022, the fiscal 2027 Energy and Water Development and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, which, according to the supplied legislative record, awaits a House floor vote after being placed on the Union Calendar.
The university system lobbied on the bill on issues including plant transformation, micronuclear reactors, bioenergy research and National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) academic programs. Separately, Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck LLP filed to terminate its University of Illinois System registration in the third quarter, ending an engagement that began earlier in the year.
By the Numbers
The third-quarter in-house report lists $140,000 in lobbying expenditures, up $90,000 from the $50,000 reported in the second quarter. The third-quarter in-house figure is $10,000 above the $130,000 reported for the third quarter of 2025.
Across all three registrants this quarter, the University of Illinois System (in-house) reported $140,000, Lewis-Burke Associates LLC reported $90,000, and Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck LLP (termination) reported $10,000. The combined client total for the third quarter is $240,000, up $30,000 from the second quarter's combined total of $210,000.
The in-house filing names two lobbyists: Paul Weinberger, assistant vice president of federal relations and former legislative director of the Senate Judiciary Committee and minority counsel on the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee; and Melissa Haas, federal relations director and former House legislative correspondent.
Broader Context
H.R. 9022, fiscal 2027 Energy and Water Appropriations
Rep. Chuck Fleischmann (R-TN) sponsored H.R. 9022, which was placed on the Union Calendar on May 22 and awaits floor consideration, according to the supplied legislative record. The House Appropriations Committee recommended $62.499 billion for the bill. A coalition of 35 environmental organizations led by the League of Conservation Voters and the Natural Resources Defense Council urged House members to oppose the bill, citing a proposed 40% cut to the renamed Office of Critical Minerals and Energy Innovation and objectionable policy riders. A Congressional Research Service analysis noted that the bill provides no fiscal 2027 funding for wind, solar and hydrogen research and development, programs that received $480 million in fiscal 2026.
H.R. 8800 and S. 4784, fiscal 2027 National Defense Authorization Act
The House passed H.R. 8800, the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year 2027, by a 216-212 vote on July 22, and the Senate has taken committee action on S. 4784, according to the supplied legislative record. S. 4784 was placed on the Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders as Calendar No. 436 on June 15. The filing lists basic research programs at the Department of Defense as the specific issue under the NDAA.
Congressional activity
Sen. Dick Durbin (D-IL) called for passage of his American Cures Act in May, which would create mandatory funding for biomedical research at the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the Department of Defense and the Department of Veterans Affairs. The University of Illinois System is listed among the endorsing organizations. Rep. Nikki Budzinski (D-IL) led letters to the Office of Management and Budget in July urging reconsideration of a proposed rule on federal grantmaking, citing millions in federal grants for the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign.
The Bottom Line
H.R. 8800 passed the House and was received in the Senate, with no Senate passage recorded in the supplied legislative record. The Energy and Water Development and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2027 (H.R. 9022), was placed on the House Union Calendar as Calendar No. 581 on May 22 and awaits floor consideration. Brownstein's termination leaves Lewis-Burke Associates LLC as the sole remaining outside registrant, reducing the university's outside-firm roster while in-house lobbying expenditures rose quarter over quarter.
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