Proponents of legislation challenging Big Tech's market presence are uncertain if there is enough time in Congress's lame-duck session to pass anything of substance.

With Congress's lame-duck session ending in early January, the window is shrinking for lawmakers to pass legislation that would regulate companies like Facebook or Google, or that would implement new privacy regulations. Some lawmakers have sought to enact bills by attaching them to legislation that must pass before the end of the year. Failing to do so would leave the bills in the hands of the upcoming split legislature, where they are less likely to pass.

Critics of the reform legislation are gaining confidence that they might run the clock out.

"We’re hopeful that due to the lack of time and consideration Congress can give to properly evaluate the costs of their current progressive antitrust bills, leadership will stop them from being rushed through," Krista Chavez, Communications Manager for the conservative tech lobbying group NetChoice, told the Washington Examiner.