Lately, Capitol Hill has started to feel more like a haunted house, teeming with ghosts and ghouls around every corner. As the House returns to order with the Representative Mike Johnson (R-LA) donning the costume of Speaker of the House of Representatives, policymakers must renew their focus on once again preventing a government shutdown while also addressing other major legislative priorities like disaster aid and a Farm Bill reauthorization.

But as Halloween draws near, monsters lurking in the nation’s capital seek to undermine common sense decision-making, opting instead for special interests and fiscal insanity. As Congress attempts to move forward on annual appropriations and other priorities, policymakers must keep the monsters at bay and ensure taxpayers are getting fiscal treats, not tricks.

Frankenstein’s Monster: Every year, mad scientists on Capitol Hill stitch together unrequested and unrequired national security projects, adding them to an already monstrous defense budget. These congressional earmark-esque provisions often benefit contractors and key appropriators’ districts leading to additional spending atop of a roughly $800 billion Pentagon budget request. And statutorily required Unfunded Priorities lists (UPLs)—annual reports the chiefs of staff of each military branch are required to submit to Congress—are goodie bags added to Frankenstein-like defense appropriations bills.

Vampires: Federal onshore oil and gas leasing policies allow private entities to siphon valuable taxpayer-owned resources from federal lands without giving taxpayers a fair return. For decades, below-market rates and favorable leasing terms—including outdated royalty rates, rental rates, and minimum bids – have cost taxpayers billions of dollars in potential revenue. A clove of garlic served up by the Department of Interior may rein in some of the worst bloodsucking policies, but we haven’t hit daylight yet.  Despite their massive profits, Big Oil and its supporters continue to bang on the door for more subsidies. Best not to invite them into the House.

Werewolves: When the full moon of Farm Bill re-authorization rises on the horizon, special interests come hungry. The five-year farm bill is a sprawling, $1.5 trillion piece of legislation covering everything from nutrition assistance to farm subsidies. With its reauthorization, policymakers have an opportunity to lay wasteful farm spending to rest and fashion a fiscally responsible, stable, and predictable farm safety net. The biggest challenge is fighting off certain large agribusinesses that exploit federal subsidies at the expense of family and beginning farmers.

Ghosts: Legacy Systems, like the Littoral Combat Ships and the KC-135R tanker, continue to linger in defense appropriations well after they should have passed. Military service chiefs are prepared to phase out these programs, but localized interests in Congress maintain their existence by legislatively requiring the Pentagon to either undertake or refrain from specific actions, such as not decommissioning certain ships. Until Congress ceases to prioritize political agendas over the Pentagon’s military strategy, these “legacy system ghosts” will persist in haunting both the budget and our national security.

Witches: The offer to brew fuel from non-food sources has bewitched lawmakers on both sides of the aisle. Advanced and cellulosic biofuels derived from non-food sources, like corn stalks and switchgrass, were meant to decrease our country’s reliance on fossil fuels and cut greenhouse gas emissions. But after nearly two decades of government mandates and billions of dollars in sugar-coated federal supports, the U.S. biofuels industry has failed to deliver on these promises.

The Blob: Crop insurance, ad hoc disaster aid, farm income entitlement programs, government-enforced minimum crop prices, and other federal agriculture subsidies and supports all add to the growing blob of the farm safety net. Yet lobbyists continue to call for higher levels of farm subsidies in the next farm bill—despite agriculture coming off a year of record high farm income. Farmers and taxpayers agree: eliminating unnecessary subsidies can save taxpayers money while also benefiting rural communities and beginning farmers. Crafting a fiscally responsible farm bill can stem the growing blob of agriculture spending while also supporting the farmers who need the most help, building long-term economic and climate resilience.

Sirens: Much like sailors enticed by siren calls, the appeal of capturing carbon dioxide to prevent it from entering the atmosphere has been irresistibly tempting. As taxpayers continue to pour millions into carbon capture and sequestration (CCS) subsidies, we must ensure these subsidies aren’t steering us off course. There is mounting evidence that CCS is not economically viable nor an answer to our climate challenges. Furthermore, there are serious concerns over fraud in current CCS subsidies; according to the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration, companies claiming a total of $894 million in carbon sequestration tax credits (45Q) ignored Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) requirements. We need increased accountability and transparency in federal CCS spending to see through this siren song.

Zombies: House appropriators added $150 million for the Adaptive Engine Transition Program (AETP) to the defense appropriations bill, potentially reanimating the F-35 alternate engine program that died a decade ago. The funding appears to be the result of a lobbying push by General Electric to fund the alternate engine, despite its far higher price tag than the engine upgrade Pratt & Whitney is proposing. While Congress stopped short of funding procurement for AETP, these added funds for Research, Development, Testing and Evaluation could mean that despite their zombie-like appearance, future proposals for an F-35 alternate engine aren’t necessarily dead on arrival.

Congress has much to do in the coming weeks and months. The current continuing resolution (CR) delaying a government shutdown will expire in 20 days, and lawmakers are far from where they need to be to finalize the dozen spending bills needed keep the government running for the next year. It won’t be easy, but as the 2nd shutdown clock continues to count down policymakers must brave the monsters on the Hill and work together to craft legislation that delivers deficit reduction and invests in programs that work.