Norton Releases Long List of Bills She Stopped This Congress That Sought to Block D.C. Laws and Policies

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC) today released a list of bills and amendments introduced or filed this Congress that sought to block District of Columbia laws and proposed policies or to establish a unique federal crime for conduct in D.C. Norton said the repeated volume of bills in defiance of D.C. home rule is one of the many reasons she is working hard to get her House-passed D.C. statehood bill through the Senate.

"I am publishing this Congress' list of Republican attempts to take down D.C. laws, not because it is so long but because it is so typical," Norton said. "I have pushed virtually all of them back, but I prefer to spend my time writing, not scrapping, bills."

The list is below.

Home Rule

Abortion

• Sen. Roger Wicker (R-MS) and Rep. Christopher Smith (R-NJ) introduced the No Taxpayer Funding for Abortion and Abortion Insurance Full Disclosure Act of 2019 (S. 109/H.R. 20), which, among other things, permanently prohibits D.C. from spending its local funds on abortion, prohibits D.C. employees from providing abortions, prohibits abortion in D.C. facilities and defines D.C. as part of the federal government for purposes of abortion.
• The House-passed Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2019 (H.R. 21) prohibits D.C. from spending its local funds on abortion in FY 19.
• The House-passed Financial Services and General Government Appropriations Act, 2019 (H.R. 264) prohibits D.C. from spending its local funds on abortion in FY 19.
• The House-passed Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2019 (H.R. 648) prohibits D.C. from spending its local funds on abortion in FY 19.
• Senate Republican leadership amendment to the Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2019 (H.R. 268) prohibits D.C. from spending its local funds on abortion in FY 19.
• The Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2019 (P.L. 116-6) prohibits D.C. from spending its local funds on abortion in FY 19.
• Rep. Martha Roby (R-AL) amendment at the House Appropriations Committee to the Financial Services and General Government Appropriations Act, 2020(H.R. 3351) that prohibits D.C. from spending its local funds on abortion in FY 20.
• Rep. Martha Roby (R-AL) offered an amendment at the House Rules Committee to the Financial Services and General Government Appropriations Act, 2020(H.R. 3351) that prohibits D.C. from spending its local funds on abortion in FY 20.
• The Senate Appropriations Committee-passed Financial Services and General Government Appropriations Act, 2020 (S. 2524) prohibits D.C. from spending its local funds on abortion in FY 20.
• The Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2020 (P.L. 116-93) prohibits D.C. from spending its local funds on abortion in FY 20.
• Rep. Robert Aderholt (R-AL) offered an amendment at the House Appropriations Committee to the Financial Services and General Government Appropriations Act, 2021 (H.R. 7668) that prohibits D.C. from spending its local funds on abortion in FY 21.

Education

• Rep. Mark Meadows (R-NC) introduced the Educational Freedom Accounts Act (H.R. 778), which requires D.C. to fund education savings accounts for tuition and other private education expenses.
• Rep. Jim Banks (R-IN) introduced the Child Safety Accounts Act (H.R. 2538), which requires D.C. to fund education savings accounts, as well as to provide taxpayers with a 100% tax credit against income taxes for donations to education savings accounts. .

Entheogenic Plants and Fungi

• Rep. Andy Harris (R-MD) offered and withdrew an amendment at the House Appropriations Committee to the Financial Services and General Government Appropriations Act, 2021 (H.R. 7668) that blocks D.C from spending its funds to enact or implement Initiative 81 (the Entheogenic Plant and Fungus Policy Act of 2020)or any similar law in FY 21, unless the person had a recommendation from a doctor.

Health Care

• Rep. Gary Palmer (R-AL) filed an amendment at the House Rules Committee to the Financial Services and General Government Appropriations Act, 2019 (H.R. 264) prohibiting D.C. from spending its local funds to carry out the Health Insurance Requirement Act in FY 19.
• Rep. Warren Davidson (R-OH) filed an amendment at the House Rules Committee to the Financial Services and General Government Appropriations Act, 2019 (H.R. 264) prohibiting D.C. from spending its local funds to seize assets to enforce the tax penalty in the Health Insurance Requirement Act in FY 19.

Death with Dignity

• Rep. Ann Wagner (R-MO) filed an amendment at the House Rules Committee to the Financial Services and General Government Appropriations Act, 2020(H.R. 3351) prohibiting D.C. from spending its local funds to carry out the Death with Dignity Act in FY 20.

Marijuana

• The House-passed Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2019 (H.R. 21) prohibits D.C. from spending its local funds on enacting recreational marijuana commercialization legislation in FY 19.
• The House-passed Financial Services and General Government Appropriations Act, 2019 (H.R. 264) prohibits D.C. from spending its local funds on enacting recreational marijuana commercialization legislation in FY 19.
• The House-passed Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2019 (H.R. 648) prohibits D.C. from spending its local funds on enacting recreational marijuana commercialization legislation in FY 19.
• Senate Republican leadership amendment to the Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2019 (H.R. 268) prohibits D.C. from spending its local funds on enacting recreational marijuana commercialization legislation in FY 19.
• Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2019 (P.L. 116-6) prohibits D.C. from spending its local funds on enacting recreational marijuana commercialization legislation in FY 19.
• The Senate Appropriations Committee-passed Financial Services and General Government Appropriations Act, 2020 (S. 2524) prohibits D.C. from spending its local funds on enacting recreational marijuana commercialization legislation in FY 20.
• The Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2020 (P.L. 116-93) prohibits D.C. from spending its local funds on enacting recreational marijuana commercialization legislation in FY 20.

Non-Discrimination

• Rep. Gary Palmer (R-AL) filed an amendment at the House Rules Committee to the Financial Services and General Government Appropriations Act, 2019 (H.R. 264) prohibiting D.C. from spending its local funds to carry out the Reproductive Health Non-Discrimination Act in FY 19.
• Rep. Gary Palmer (R-AL) filed an amendment at the House Rules Committee to the Financial Services and General Government Appropriations Act, 2020(H.R. 3351) prohibiting D.C. from spending its local funds to carry out the Reproductive Health Non-Discrimination Act in FY 20.
• Rep. Gary Palmer (R-AL) filed an amendment at the House Rules Committee to the Financial Services and General Government Appropriations Act, 2021(H.R. 7617) prohibiting D.C. from spending its local funds to carry out the Reproductive Health Non-Discrimination Act in FY 21.

Sex Work

• Rep. Andy Harris (R-MD) offered an amendment at the House Appropriations Committee to the Financial Services and General Government Appropriations Act, 2020(H.R. 3351) prohibiting D.C. from spending its local funds on enacting legalization of or reducing penalties for soliciting commercial sex in FY 20.
• Rep. Vicky Hartzler (R-MO) filed an amendment at the House Rules Committee to the Financial Services and General Government Appropriations Act, 2020(H.R. 3351) prohibiting D.C. from spending its local funds to reduce penalties for commercial sex in FY 20.
• Rep. Ann Wagner (R-MO) filed an amendment at the House Rules Committee to the Financial Services and General Government Appropriations Act, 2020(H.R. 3351) expressing the sense of the House that D.C. should not decriminalize commercial sex.

Retrocession

• Rep. Dusty Johnson (R-SD) introduced a bill (H.R. 8539) to retrocede D.C. to Maryland.
• Rep. Morgan Griffith (R-VA) introduced a bill (H.R. 8516) to retrocede D.C. to Maryland.

Streets

• Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) introduced a bill to designate the area between the intersections of 16th Street NW and Fuller Street NW and 16th Street NW and Euclid Street NW as "Oswaldo Paya Way" (S. 4267).

Congressional Review Period

• Rep. Paul Gosar (R-AZ) introduced the District of Columbia Home Rule Improvement Act (H.R. 4445), which increases the congressional review period for D.C. legislation to 60 days and expands the fast-track disapproval procedures.

Creating Unique Federal Crimes for Conduct in D.C.

Female Genital Mutilation

• Rep. Scott Perry (R-PA) and Sen. Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) introduced the Federal Prohibition of Female Genital Mutilation Act of 2019 (H.R. 3583/S. 2017), which, among other things, makes it a special federal crime to perform female genital mutilation in D.C.
• Sen. Joni Ernst (R-IA) introduced the Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act of 2019 (S. 2920), which, among other things, makes it a special federal crime to perform female genital mutilation in D.C..

Labor

• Rep. Francis Rooney (R-FL) introduced the Freedom From Union Violence Act of 2019 (H.R. 4256), which, among other things, makes it a special federal crime to commit violence in D.C. in connection with a labor dispute.

• Rep Ralph Norman (R-SC) filed an amendment at the House Rules Committee to the Protecting the Right to Organize Act of 2019 (H.R. 2474) that, among other things, makes it a special federal crime to commit violence in D.C. in connection with a labor dispute.