[Congressional Bills 109th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 5410 Introduced in House (IH)]








109th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 5410

To provide for the treatment of the District of Columbia as a State for 
purposes of representation in the House of Representatives and Senate, 
                        and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                              May 17, 2006

  Ms. Norton introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
    Committee on the Judiciary, and in addition to the Committee on 
 Government Reform, for a period to be subsequently determined by the 
  Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall 
           within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To provide for the treatment of the District of Columbia as a State for 
purposes of representation in the House of Representatives and Senate, 
                        and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``No Taxation Without Representation 
Act of 2006''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds the following:
            (1) The residents of the District of Columbia are the only 
        Americans who pay Federal income taxes and who have fought and 
        died in every American war but are denied voting representation 
        in the House of Representatives and the Senate.
            (2) The residents of the District of Columbia suffer the 
        very injustice against which our Founding Fathers fought, 
        because they do not have voting representation as other 
        taxpaying Americans do and are nevertheless required to pay 
        Federal income taxes unlike the Americans who live in the 
        territories.
            (3) The principle of one person, one vote requires that 
        residents of the District of Columbia are afforded full voting 
        representation in the House and the Senate.
            (4) Despite the denial of voting representation, Americans 
        in the Nation's Capital are third among residents of all States 
        in per capita income taxes paid to the Federal Government.
            (5) Unequal voting representation in our representative 
        democracy is inconsistent with the founding principles of the 
        Nation and the strongly held principles of the American people 
        today.

SEC. 3. REPRESENTATION IN CONGRESS FOR DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA.

    Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the District of 
Columbia shall be treated as a State for the purposes of representation 
in the House of Representatives and the Senate.

SEC. 4. ELECTIONS.

    (a) First Elections.--
            (1) Proclamation.--Not later than 30 days after the date of 
        enactment of this Act, the Mayor of the District of Columbia 
        shall issue a proclamation for elections to be held to fill the 
        2 Senate seats and the seat in the House of Representatives to 
        represent the District of Columbia in Congress.
            (2) Manner of elections.--The proclamation of the Mayor of 
        the District of Columbia required by paragraph (1) shall 
        provide for the holding of a primary election and a general 
        election and at such elections the officers to be elected shall 
        be chosen by a popular vote of the residents of the District of 
        Columbia. The manner in which such elections shall be held and 
        the qualification of voters shall be the same as those for 
        local elections, as prescribed by the District of Columbia.
            (3) Classification of senators.--In the first election of 
        Senators from the District of Columbia, the 2 senatorial 
        offices shall be separately identified and designated, and no 
        person may be a candidate for both offices. No such 
        identification or designation of either of the 2 senatorial 
        offices shall refer to or be taken to refer to the terms of 
        such offices, or in any way impair the privilege of the Senate 
        to determine the class to which each of the Senators elected 
        shall be assigned.
    (b) Certification of Election.--The results of an election for the 
Senators and Representative from the District of Columbia shall be 
certified by the Mayor of the District of Columbia in the manner 
required by law and the Senators and Representative shall be entitled 
to be admitted to seats in Congress and to all the rights and 
privileges of Senators and Representatives of the States in the 
Congress of the United States.

SEC. 5. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES MEMBERSHIP.

    (a) In General.--Upon the date of enactment of this Act, the 
District of Columbia shall be entitled to 1 Representative until the 
taking effect of the next reapportionment. Such Representative shall be 
in addition to the membership of the House of Representatives as now 
prescribed by law.
    (b) Increase in Membership of House of Representatives.--Upon the 
date of enactment of this Act, the permanent membership of the House of 
Representatives shall increase by 1 seat for the purpose of future 
reapportionment of Representatives.
    (c) Reapportionment.--Upon reapportionment, the District of 
Columbia shall be entitled to as many seats in the House of 
Representatives as a similarly populous State would be entitled to 
under the law.

SEC. 6. PROVIDING FOR ELECTIONS FOR HOUSE MEMBERS AND SENATORS FROM 
              DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA.

    (a) Application of District of Columbia Elections Code of 1955.--
The District of Columbia Elections Code of 1955 is amended as follows:
            (1) In section 1 (sec. 1-1001.01, D.C. Official Code), by 
        striking ``the Delegate to the House of Representatives,'' and 
        inserting ``the Representative in the Congress, Senator,''.
            (2) In section 2 (sec. 1-1001.02, D.C. Official Code)--
                    (A) by striking paragraph (6); and
                    (B) in paragraph (13), by striking ``the Delegate 
                to Congress for the District of Columbia, United States 
                Senator and Representative,'' and inserting ``the 
                Representative in the Congress, Senator,''.
            (3) In section 8 (sec. 1-1001.08, D.C. Official Code)--
                    (A) in the heading, by striking ``Delegate'' and 
                inserting ``Representative, Senator,''; and
                    (B) by striking ``Delegate,'' each place it appears 
                in subsections (h)(1)(A), (i)(1), and (j)(1) and 
                inserting ``Representative in the Congress, Senator,''.
            (4) In section 10 (sec. 1-1001.10, D.C. Official Code)--
                    (A) in subsection (a)(3)(A)--
                            (i) by striking ``or section 206(d) of the 
                        District of Columbia Delegate Act'', and
                            (ii) by striking ``the office of Delegate 
                        to the House of Representatives'' and inserting 
                        ``the office of Representative in the 
                        Congress'';
                    (B) in subsection (d)(1), by striking ``Delegate,'' 
                each place it appears;
                    (C) in subsection (d)(2)--
                            (i) by striking ``(A) In the event'' and 
                        all that follows through ``term of office,'' 
                        and inserting ``In the event that a vacancy 
                        occurs in the office of Representative in the 
                        Congress before May 1 of the last year of the 
                        Representative's term of office,'' and
                            (ii) by striking subparagraph (B); and
                    (D) by amending subsection (d)(3) to read as 
                follows:
    ``(3) In the event of a vacancy in the office of Senator, the Mayor 
shall appoint a successor to complete the remainder of the term of 
office.''.
            (5) In section 11(a)(2) (sec. 1-1001.11(a)(2), D.C. 
        Official Code), by striking ``Delegate to the House of 
        Representatives,'' and inserting ``Representative in the 
        Congress, Senator,''.
            (6) In section 15(b) (sec. 1-1001.15(b), D.C. Official 
        Code), by striking ``Delegate,'' and inserting ``Representative 
        in the Congress, Senator,''.
            (7) In section 17(a) (sec. 1-1001.17(a), D.C. Official 
        Code), by striking ``the Delegate to the Congress from the 
        District of Columbia'' and inserting ``the Representative in 
        the Congress and Senator''.
    (b) Treatment of District of Columbia Delegate.--
            (1) Continuation of service.--Until the first 
        Representative from the District of Columbia is seated in the 
        House of Representatives, the Delegate in Congress from the 
        District of Columbia shall continue to discharge the duties of 
        his or her office.
            (2) Repeal of office upon election of first 
        representative.--Sections 202 and 204 of the District of 
        Columbia Delegate Act (Public Law 91-405; sections 1-401 and 1-
        402, D.C. Official Code) are repealed, and the provisions of 
        law amended or repealed by such sections are restored or 
        revived as if such sections had not been enacted.
    (c) Effective Date.--Except as provided in section 4(a), the 
amendments made by this section shall apply with respect to the 
election of the first Representative and Senators from the District of 
Columbia pursuant to this Act and each subsequent election of 
Representatives and Senators from the District of Columbia pursuant to 
this Act.

SEC. 7. REPEAL OF OFFICES OF STATEHOOD REPRESENTATIVE AND SENATOR.

    (a) In General.--Section 4 of the District of Columbia Statehood 
Constitutional Convention Initiative of 1979 (sec. 1-123, D.C. Official 
Code) is amended by striking subsections (d), (e), (f), and (g).
    (b) Conforming Amendments.--
            (1) Statehood commission.--Section 6 of such Initiative 
        (sec. 1-125, D.C. Official Code) is amended--
                    (A) in subsection (a)--
                            (i) by striking ``27 voting members'' and 
                        inserting ``24 voting members'';
                            (ii) by adding ``and'' at the end of 
                        paragraph (4); and
                            (iii) by striking paragraphs (5) and (6) 
                        and redesignating paragraph (7) as paragraph 
                        (5); and
                    (B) in subsection (a-1)(1), by striking 
                subparagraphs (F), (G), and (H).
            (2) Authorization of appropriations.--Section 8 of such 
        Initiative (sec. 1-127, D.C. Official Code) is repealed.
            (3) Application of honoraria limitations.--Section 4 of 
        D.C. Law 8-135 (sec. 1-131, D.C. Official Code) is repealed.
            (4) Application of campaign finance laws.--Section 3 of the 
        Statehood Convention Procedural Amendments Act of 1982 (sec. 1-
        135, D.C. Official Code) is repealed.
            (5) District of columbia elections code of 1955.--Section 
        2(13) of the District of Columbia Elections Code of 1955 (sec. 
        1-1001.02(13), D.C. Official Code) is amended by striking 
        ``United States Senator and Representative,''.
    (c) Effective Date.--The amendments made by this section shall take 
effect upon the taking office of the first Representative and Senators 
from the District of Columbia pursuant to this Act.
                                 <all>