With the midterm election now just five weeks away, senators plan to wrap up legislative business in Washington this week and then hit the campaign trail for the month of October. They will join their House of Representatives colleagues, who have been home campaigning since that chamber adjourned on September 16.

Before departing, senators are expected to vote September 30 on a bill to push large artificial intelligence (AI) and tech companies that are building data centers to cover the cost of increased utility and infrastructure needs and ensure those costs don't fall to local communities. Data centers have become a major flashpoint in the midterms. Consumers are pushing back against the impact the facilities are having on electric and water bills for nearby residents, as well as the broader environmental and noise impact. The Ratepayer Protection Act, which passed the House on a bipartisan 417-3 vote earlier this month, would encourage—but not mandate—states to adopt a federal standard that data centers are paying 100% of the cost of additional power infrastructure and usage. Senate Democrats are in a tricky spot, with many concerned that the lack of a mandate renders the bill ineffective. But given the political atmosphere around data centers, some may follow their House colleagues in supporting the bill as a first step.

Senators are also expected to address another political hot-button issue when they hold a September 30 vote on a bill to ban Members of Congress and their families from stock trading while they are in office. The House passed the bill earlier this year. The measure has broad public support as lawmakers wrestle with the optics of trading stocks when they may have access to non-public information.

Both the House and Senate will return to Washington the week of November 9 to start the post-election "lame duck" session of Congress, which will include a battle over government funding. Congress passed a temporary measure to fund all government operations once the new fiscal year begins on October 1. But the funding expires on December 11, setting up a potentially complicated debate after the election.

On September 21, Schwab submitted a comment letter supporting the SEC's proposal to allow financial firms to electronically deliver to investors many documents required under federal securities laws. Current law requires that investors receive paper copies of documents like fund prospectuses and shareholder reports in the mail, but investors can opt in to receiving documents electronically.

The proposal would make e-delivery the standard, while investors who would prefer paper documents could opt in to receiving them via U.S. mail. Defaulting to e-delivery gives investors faster, more secure access to important documents while also significantly reducing printing and mailing costs for companies. Schwab noted in its letter that about 80% of its customers have already opted in to electronic delivery. Schwab asked the SEC to make several adjustments to the proposal to make the rules of the road clearer and improve adoption. The SEC will consider the more than 100,000 comment letters it received before deciding whether to issue a final rule.

Peirce, who has been a commissioner since 2018, posted her resignation letter on September 25. She had announced earlier this year that she would be leaving the SEC to become a law professor at Regent University in Virginia Beach, Va.

Peirce has been known as "Crypto Mom" for her long-running advocacy for digital assets and has chaired the SEC's crypto task force for the last 18 months. Peirce's last SEC meeting will take place on September 30. Her departure will leave the agency with just two commissioners—Chair Paul S. Atkins and Republican Commissioner Mark T. Uyeda—and three vacancies. Two of those slots are reserved for Democrats, but the Trump administration has opted to leave Democratic seats unfilled at several major regulatory agencies. It's unclear when (or if) the administration will make nominations to fill the three vacancies.

The CFTC is stepping up its scrutiny of prediction markets, which allow consumers to bet on the outcomes of everything from elections to pop culture events to sports. On September 22, the agency warned exchanges that a newer type of contract tied to whether a specific person says or does something — known as "mention markets" — is particularly vulnerable to manipulation. On some platforms, individuals can place bets on whether a celebrity or other public figure will say certain words or phrases at a public event. The agency said it expects prediction market platforms to show they have adequate safeguards against manipulation before listing such contracts. The advisory is the CFTC's first official comment on mention markets.

Collin Martin, head of fixed income research and strategy at the Schwab Center for Financial Research, joins me for a timely discussion of the recent volatility in the bond market. We talk about the Fed's mid-September interest rate hike, the Treasury Secretary's bond buyback program, the impact of the rising national debt on bonds, and more. Collin also shares his outlook for rates, credit markets, and fixed-income investing heading into 2027, and where investors may find potential opportunities in today's market. Listen to the WashingtonWise podcast on our website or wherever you get your podcasts.