September 29, 2005: NORTON ON-TIME PROCEDURE FREEING D.C. BUDGET TODAY NOW WORKING EVERY YEAR
January 9, 2006
Washington, DC--For the third year in a row the D.C. government will begin spending its own local money on time on October 1, the first day of the new fiscal year, with passage of a continuing resolution (CR) later today, thanks to a procedure Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC) has negotiated with Senate and House negotiators to free the city’s appropriation on time. The Congresswoman was able to get the new set of House and Senate appropriators to continue the early out procedure. The city’s taxpayer-raised budget is expected to pass in a CR today, even though most federal appropriations have not even gone to conference yet and only two have been enacted. Norton has convinced appropriators to use this procedure freeing its entire local budget as passed by the City Council even though the D.C. appropriation itself has not gone to the Senate floor. She said, “I am enormously glad for the city that the new appropriators agreed to accept the on-time procedure that has been so successful for the past two years.” Norton said that timeliness is central just to keep the city operating “without the functional equivalent of handcuffs under the usual CR,” but the new procedure totally frees the budget for the next year, in this case, ‘06, and allows the city to spend its ‘06 budget now rather than spending at last year’s levels as CRs generally do until final approval of the entire D.C. appropriation by the Congress. “The ability to meet increased expenditures, operate new programs, and acquire needed equipment, is the heart and soul of a smooth running city,” she said, “and that is impossible under the delays and CRs the city labored under until two years ago.” A small amount of the $5.3 billion budget to fund D.C. courts, prisons and post-release inmate services will remain until the rest of the federal appropriation is approved because these services are federally-funded under the Revitalization Act that transferred these city costs to the federal government.
The House reorganized its appropriations process this year, abolishing three subcommittees, including the separate D.C. appropriations subcommittee. The District subcommittee is now a part of the combined Subcommittee on Transportation, Treasury, HUD, the Judiciary, District of Columbia, and Independent Agencies. However, Norton successfully fought to retain the Senate D.C. appropriations subcommittee.
Norton also expects final passage during this session of her provision that authorizes the District to spend local funds (up to 6 percent) for unforeseen costs without coming back to Congress for the same kind of appropriation approval during the mid-year supplemental appropriation process. The breakthrough provision is part of the Norton/Davis D.C. Omnibus Authorization Act of 2005, recently approved by the Government Reform Committee.
Norton’s on-time procedure for all local D.C. funds tracks some of the pending Budget Autonomy bill (H.R.1629), sponsored by Norton and Rep. Tom Davis (R-VA). However, full and complete budget autonomy will not come until the city achieves statehood, Norton said, because even the best budget autonomy provision would continue to allow Congress to intervene into the budget and civic affairs of the District, under Article 1, Section 8 of the Constitution. “Until statehood, we must do what we have always done and continue to develop and use incremental approaches like the on-time D.C. appropriation procedure and the pending Budget Autonomy bill that increase the city’s autonomy over its local funds and other bills benefiting the city that I have found I could get done here. In this case, the city’s local money raised from local taxpayers has no relevance to a federal body. The wonderful cooperation I’ve gotten from our appropriators is a good sign that we can take this important first step on a permanent basis with passage of my Budget Autonomy bill,” Norton said. She said she was grateful to the new chairs, House Appropriations Committee Chair Jerry Lewis (R-CA), Subcommittee Chair Joe Knollenberg (R-MI), Senate Chair Thad Cochran (R-MS), and Subcommittee Chair Sam Brownback (R-KS); as well as the Ranking Members.
The House reorganized its appropriations process this year, abolishing three subcommittees, including the separate D.C. appropriations subcommittee. The District subcommittee is now a part of the combined Subcommittee on Transportation, Treasury, HUD, the Judiciary, District of Columbia, and Independent Agencies. However, Norton successfully fought to retain the Senate D.C. appropriations subcommittee.
Norton also expects final passage during this session of her provision that authorizes the District to spend local funds (up to 6 percent) for unforeseen costs without coming back to Congress for the same kind of appropriation approval during the mid-year supplemental appropriation process. The breakthrough provision is part of the Norton/Davis D.C. Omnibus Authorization Act of 2005, recently approved by the Government Reform Committee.
Norton’s on-time procedure for all local D.C. funds tracks some of the pending Budget Autonomy bill (H.R.1629), sponsored by Norton and Rep. Tom Davis (R-VA). However, full and complete budget autonomy will not come until the city achieves statehood, Norton said, because even the best budget autonomy provision would continue to allow Congress to intervene into the budget and civic affairs of the District, under Article 1, Section 8 of the Constitution. “Until statehood, we must do what we have always done and continue to develop and use incremental approaches like the on-time D.C. appropriation procedure and the pending Budget Autonomy bill that increase the city’s autonomy over its local funds and other bills benefiting the city that I have found I could get done here. In this case, the city’s local money raised from local taxpayers has no relevance to a federal body. The wonderful cooperation I’ve gotten from our appropriators is a good sign that we can take this important first step on a permanent basis with passage of my Budget Autonomy bill,” Norton said. She said she was grateful to the new chairs, House Appropriations Committee Chair Jerry Lewis (R-CA), Subcommittee Chair Joe Knollenberg (R-MI), Senate Chair Thad Cochran (R-MS), and Subcommittee Chair Sam Brownback (R-KS); as well as the Ranking Members.