Newsletter: Wednesday July 23, 2025
Norton Calls D.C. Appropriations Bill Text “Unreasonable” and “Patronizing” to 700,000+ D.C. ResidentsWASHINGTON, D.C. – The House Committee on Appropriations released the text of its fiscal year 2026 (FY 26) Financial Services and General Government (FSSG) Appropriations bill, which Norton said includes an outrageous number of anti-home rule riders. Republicans try to attach the riders to the annual D.C. spending bill to exert control over local D.C. matters, despite their positions as federal officials who do not represent D.C. residents. Significantly, the bill would halve funding for DCTAG, a program established by a 1999 Norton bill. DCTAG makes up the difference for D.C. residents between in-state and out-of-state tuition up to $10,000 at public institutions of higher education in the U.S. |
Norton, Raskin, Van Hollen Introduce Bill to Remove Name of Segregationist from Chevy Chase CircleWASHINGTON, D.C. – Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC), Congressman Jamie Raskin (D-MD), and Senator Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) introduced a bill which would remove the plaque and inscriptions bearing Francis Newlands' name from Chevy Chase Circle a federal park located in both the District of Columbia and in Maryland's 8th Congressional District, which Raskin represents. Newlands was a U.S. senator from Nevada, a conservationist and the founder of the Chevy Chase Land Company, which developed the Chevy Chase neighborhood. Newlands was also a segregationist and held racist views. The Subcommittee on National Parks, Forests, and Public Lands held a hearing on the bill in 2022, where Norton testified that “Newlands does not deserve to be honored on federal land.” |
Norton Says Anti-Home Rule Riders on Subcommittee-Passed D.C. Appropriations Bill are “Appalling” and “Unsurprising”WASHINGTON, D.C. – The House Committee on Appropriations marked up and passed the fiscal year 2026 (FY 26) Financial Services and General Government (FSSG) Appropriations bill, which Norton said includes an outrageous and irresponsible number of anti-home rule riders. Republicans try to attach the riders to the annual D.C. spending bill to exert control over local D.C. matters, despite their positions as federal officials who do not represent D.C. residents. Significantly, the bill would halve funding for DCTAG, a program established by a 1999 Norton bill. DCTAG makes up the difference for D.C. residents between in-state and out-of-state tuition up to $10,000 at public institutions of higher education in the U.S. |
Norton Introduces Bill to Give D.C. Control Over Operations of Local D.C. CourtsWASHINGTON, D.C. – Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC) introduced her District of Columbia Courts Home Rule Act, which would give the D.C. Council authority over the jurisdiction and organization of the local D.C. courts. The D.C. Home Rule Act expressly prohibits D.C. from enacting any law with respect to any provision of the D.C. Code that relates to the jurisdiction and organization of the local D.C. courts. Congress can give D.C. this authority even before the District becomes the 51st state. |