Press Releases

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC) and Congresswoman Victoria Spartz (R-IN) today announced that they will be the co-leads of the Consider Teachers Act of 2021 (H.R. 2048). This bill would fix a broken system burdening teachers with unfair loans under the TEACH Grant program. On April 27, 2021, the Senate passed the companion bill (S. 848), introduced by Senators Mike Braun (R-IN) and Kyrsten Sinema (D-AZ), by unanimous consent.

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC), Co-Chair of the Quiet Skies Caucus, participated in the Subcommittee on Aviation’s roundtable “Final Approach: An Update on Air Traffic Control Modernization,” which took place on May 18, 2021. Norton used the opportunity to question the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) about its plans to combat aviation noise.

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC) today announced that she will introduce the District of Columbia Federal Officials Residency Requirement Equality Act, which would require federal district court judges, federal circuit court judges, the U.S. Attorney, the two U.S. Marshals, and the federal court clerk who serve in D.C. to reside in D.C., just as such officials are required to do in other jurisdictions. The bill is part of Norton’s “Free and Equal D.C.” series of bills, which would require equal treatment for D.C. as Norton strives for statehood, the District’s ultimate goal.

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC) will hold a virtual roundtable via Zoom on fencing at the Capitol complex today, June 1, 2021, at 7:00 p.m. The roundtable will feature four expert panelists: architect Thomas Vonier, former Commanding General of the D.C. National Guard Major General Errol Schwartz, landscape architect Faye Harwell, and president and CEO of the National Association for Olmsted Parks Dede Petri.

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC), the chair of the Subcommittee on Highways and Transit, today announced that she will introduce a bill to require that car crash test dummies be modeled on both male and female bodies. The federal government only uses crash test dummies modeled on male bodies, and car companies are not required to use dummies modeled on female bodies either. More important than differences in average height between males and females, there are also other biological differences in anatomy, such as average neck strength and posture, that affect how female and male bodies react in a crash. Since cars are not required to be tested with the safety of women in mind, women are at higher risk of injury and death in car crashes.

WASHINGTON, D.C.—Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC) said that President Biden’s fiscal year 2022 budget, released today, has many important victories for the District of Columbia that she requested, including $40 million for the D.C. Tuition Assistance Grant program (DCTAG), which a Norton bill created, and an increase in the DCTAG annual and lifetime grants. However, she said she was disappointed that the budget maintains the rider that prohibits D.C. from spending its local funds on recreational marijuana commercialization, which more than a dozen states have done.

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC) sent a letter requesting that the National Park Service permanently close to motor vehicles the portion of Beach Drive NW in the District of Columbia that has been closed to motor vehicles during the coronavirus pandemic. The portion has been closed during the pandemic to provide more space for pedestrians, bicyclists and recreation. Thousands of people now use Beach Drive to walk, run, bike and play.

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC) introduced a resolution recognizing District of Columbia servicemembers in advance of Memorial Day. Her resolution also calls for statehood for the District to ensure these servicemembers and veterans enjoy the full rights of American democracy given to other American citizens. D.C. servicemembers have served in every war since the Revolutionary War, all without the full and equal rights that can come only with statehood.