Media

WASHINGTON, D.C. – As the federal tax filing season kicks off today, Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC) reminded the American public that the District of Columbia pays more federal taxes per capita than any state and more federal taxes overall than 21 states, but that D.C. residents do not have the voting representation in Congress or the full local self-government accorded to residents of the 50 states. Norton said that the remedy is for the Senate to pass her House-passed D.C. statehood bill.

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC), chair of the Subcommittee on Highways and Transit, will hold a virtual town hall on Thursday, January 27, 2022, at 6:00 p.m. via Zoom. The town hall will focus on road safety for all users, including pedestrians, bicyclists, drivers, and scooter users.

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC) thanked Senate Majority Leader Charles Schumer (D-NY) for filing cloture today on seven local District of Columbia court nominees, setting up confirmation votes for when the Senate returns from recess. The local D.C. courts are facing an unprecedented vacancy crisis, which is harming public safety and access to justice, because Republicans have prevented the Senate from confirming any local D.C. court nominees this Congress. Historically, local D.C. court nominees generally have been confirmed by voice vote.

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC) today listed the more than 20 Republican attempts to overturn District of Columbia laws and policies so far this Congress and reiterated her pledge to continue defeating these attacks.

WASHINGTON, D.C. –– Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC) today reintroduced the District of Columbia Government Title Equality Act, which would redesignate the Mayor of the District of Columbia as the Governor, the D.C. Council as the Legislative Assembly, the D.C. Councilmembers as Representatives, and the Chair of the Council as the Speaker. These are the titles used in the State of Washington, Douglass Commonwealth constitution, which the District adopted in 2016 in anticipation of passage of a bill to make D.C. the 51st state. Norton introduced the bill to highlight to the American people and Members of Congress that there would be a seamless transition to D.C. statehood because D.C. residents pay full federal taxes and D.C. operates as the functional equivalent of a state, providing state-, county- and city-level services, despite being denied voting representation in the House and Senate and full local self-government.

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC) announced that her bill to authorize the establishment of a memorial on federal land in the District of Columbia to honor enslaved persons passed the House Committee on Natural Resources today. The memorial, to be established by the Georgetown African American Historic Landmark Project and Tour, would honor enslaved persons’ presence, celebrate their contributions to history and recognize their resilience and fortitude. Norton’s bill originally would have established a memorial honoring the enslaved persons who disembarked at the Georgetown Waterfront, but Norton and the committee decided to amend the bill to honor all enslaved persons.

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC) today announced that she will file legislation that directs the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to conduct studies on alternative sources of drinking water for the District of Columbia and on flood mitigation in the Federal Triangle area of D.C. Norton will file this legislation in the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure as part of the committee’s development of the forthcoming Water Resources Development Act of 2022.

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC) said today that she will defeat a bill introduced yesterday by Senator Rand Paul (R-KY) that would nullify the District of Columbia’s requirements that individuals present documentation of COVID-19 vaccination to enter certain facilities and that students receive COVID-19 vaccination. Paul is the sixth member this Congress to try to block a D.C. vaccine policy.