September 15, 2005: NORTON GETS BUDGET AUTONOMY FROM ANNUAL SUPPLEMENTAL PROCESS

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September 15, 2005

Washington, DC—Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC) praised Government Reform Committee passage of a provision she called “a precursor to budget autonomy,” as a part of the D.C. Omnibus Authorization Act of 2005 today. This provision authorizes the District to spend local funds (up to 6 percent) for unforeseen costs without coming back to Congress for approval during the mid-year supplemental appropriation process. The bill also includes vital provisions in areas such as public charter school board reform, permanent authorization of the chief financial officer, and improvements in the management of D.C. courts.

Norton said that budget autonomy from the supplemental process was by far the most important provision of this year’s Omnibus. “It is impossible to overestimate the hardship on this or any city of being unable to engage in fiscal transactions--from spending funds in the bank for vital city needs to floating bonds,” Norton said. “The new Omnibus provision will essentially enact part of the D.C. Budget Autonomy Act Chairman Davis and I have introduced to give the District considerable freedom from the annual congressional appropriations process that redundantly requires the District’s balanced budget to come to the Congress before it becomes effective.” Norton expects the Davis-Norton Budget Autonomy bill to pass during the 2005-2006 congressional session.

The other key provisions in the 2005 omnibus authorization bill are:

1) A provision allowing the District to tap into its emergency and contingency reserve funds provided D.C. reimburses those funds.

2) An amendment to the District of Columbia School Reform Act of 1995 to remove the Department of Education from the process of selecting members of the D.C. Public Charter School Board.

3) A revision of the pay cap for nonjudicial court employees to enable the courts to effectively implement a performance management system. This would put the nonjudicial personnel of the D.C. Courts on par with the nonjudicial employees of the federal courts in the District.

4) Authority for the D.C. Courts to conduct business outside of the District in case of emergency.

5) A permanent authorization for the District’s Chief Financial Officer, as well as personnel authority and procurement authority for the CFO. The bill also requires that all legislation passed by the D.C. Council be accompanied by a fiscal impact statement.