Norton to Take to House Floor to Highlight Historic Progress on D.C. Statehood, Discuss Little-Known Facts About D.C. and Combat Pending D.C. Riders, Today

WASHINGTON, D.C.—Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC) will speak on the House floor today for 30 minutes to discuss the historic progress on statehood for the District of Columbia this Congress, to inform Members and a national audience about little-known facts about the size of D.C.'s population, economy and budget, to outline the District's contributions to the nation, particularly its rank as first in federal taxes per capita, and highlight the threats to D.C.'s local laws in the House's pending fiscal year (FY) 2019 D.C. Appropriations bill, most of which Norton expects to defeat. Norton is expected to speak on the House floor at 1:00 p.m.

"Just as the Capitals showed last night, nothing is impossible," Norton said. "I will go to the House floor to inform Members of Congress and the public that statehood is required to remedy D.C.'s second-class status in the union. D.C. is more than prepared to be a state. Once the American people learn about the District's status, most are with us."

Norton's D.C. statehood bill now has record cosponsorship in the House and Senate. More than 80 percent of House Democrats (159) and more than 50 percent of Senate Democrats (25) are cosponsors of the bill.

Norton will also address the House's pending FY 19 D.C. Appropriations bill, which has five provisions that would either outright repeal local D.C. laws or prohibit D.C. from spending its own local taxpayer funds, consisting of local taxes and fees, to carry out local D.C. laws. The bill repeals D.C.'s medical aid in dying law, the Death with Dignity Act; prohibits D.C. from spending its local funds to carry out the Reproductive Health Non-Discrimination Act, which prohibits employers from discriminating against employees based on their reproductive health decisions; repeals the Local Budget Autonomy Act, which allows D.C. to spend its local funds without congressional approval and which has been upheld by the courts; prohibits D.C. from spending its local funds on recreational marijuana commercialization; and prohibits D.C. from spending its local funds on abortions for low-income women. All of these provisions were in the House-passed FY 18 D.C. Appropriations bill, but Norton was able to remove all but the abortion and marijuana riders from the enacted bill.