Norton Highlights Biden Administration Statement Opposing Disapproval Resolution to Nullify Local D.C. Policing Reform

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC) today highlighted the Biden Administration’s Statement of Administration Policy (SAP) opposing the disapproval resolution that would, if enacted, nullify D.C.’s policing reform legislation. The House is expected to vote on the resolution this week. Norton said the resolution, and the enactment of the previous disapproval resolution that nullified D.C.’s revised criminal code, draw attention to the need for the only permanent protection for D.C. residents’ right to autonomy and local control over local affairs: enactment of her D.C. statehood bill.

“Thank you, President Biden, for today’s SAP opposing the resolution heading to the House floor this week,” Norton said. “Today’s statement reinforces your administration’s opposition to the resolution and reminds us that you are a longstanding supporter of the only permanent protection for D.C. residents’ right to local control of their own local affairs – enacting my D.C. statehood bill. With House passage twice in the last two Congresses of my D.C. statehood bill, I believe we are closer than ever.

“The nearly 700,000 residents of the nation’s capital deserve, and are fully capable of, governing themselves, and I will continue fighting to defeat this and future disapproval resolutions seeking to override the will of D.C. residents expressed through the District’s own local democratic processes.”

The House Committee on Oversight and Accountability voted to report out the disapproval resolution in March. The text of the SAP follows.

STATEMENT OF ADMINISTRATION POLICY

H.J. Res. 42 – Disapproving the Action of the District of Columbia Council in Approving the Comprehensive Policing and Justice Reform Amendment Act of 2022

(Rep. Clyde, R-GA, and 19 cosponsors)

The Administration opposes H.J. Res. 42, Disapproving the Action of the District of Columbia Council in Approving the Comprehensive Policing and Justice Reform Amendment Act of 2022. The President believes we have an obligation to make sure all our people are safe and that public safety depends on public trust. It is a core policy of this Administration to provide law enforcement the resources they need for effective, accountable community policing. While President Biden does not support every provision of the Comprehensive Policing and Justice Reform Amendment Act of 2022, he will not support congressional Republicans’ efforts to overturn commonsense police reforms such as: banning chokeholds; limiting use of force and deadly force; improving access to body-worn camera recordings; and requiring officer training on de-escalation and use of force. Congress should respect the District of Columbia’s right to pass measures that improve public safety and public trust. The President also continues to call on Congress to pass common sense police reform legislation.

If the President were presented with H.J. Res. 42, he would veto it.

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