[Congressional Record Volume 159, Number 82 (Tuesday, June 11, 2013)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E839]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




         THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA NATIONAL GUARD HOME RULE ACT

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                       HON. ELEANOR HOLMES NORTON

                      of the district of columbia

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, June 11, 2013

  Ms. NORTON. Mr. Speaker, as the Atlantic hurricane season begins, a 
time when many of our National Guards will be deployed to various parts 
of the country, I introduce a bill that would give the mayor of the 
District of Columbia authority over deploying the D.C. National Guard, 
after consultation with the Commanding General of the D.C. National 
Guard, with the President retaining authority on federal matters. In 
local emergencies, including natural disasters and civil disturbances 
unrelated to national or homeland security, the mayor of the District 
of Columbia should have the same authority that governors exercise over 
the National Guard in their states. Each governor, as head of state, 
has the authority to mobilize the National Guard to protect his or her 
state, just as local militia did historically.
  The National Guards in the 50 states operate under dual federal and 
local jurisdiction. Yet only the President and the Commanding General 
of the D.C. National Guard currently have the authority to deploy the 
D.C. National Guard for local and national purposes, respectively. 
Today, by far the most likely need for the D.C. National Guard here 
would be for natural disasters, such as hurricanes and floods, and to 
restore order in the wake of civil disturbances. The mayor, who knows 
the city better than any federal official and who works closely with 
federal security officials, should be able to call on the D.C. National 
Guard for local natural disasters and civil disturbances, after 
consultation with the Commanding General of the D.C. National Guard. 
The President should be focused on national matters, including homeland 
security, not local D.C. matters. Homeland security authority, with 
respect to the D.C. National Guard, would remain the sole province of 
the President, along with the power to nationalize the D.C. National 
Guard for federal matters at will. It does no harm to give the mayor 
this authority for civil disturbances and natural disasters. However, 
it could do significant harm to leave the mayor powerless to act 
quickly. If it makes sense that governors would have control over the 
mobilization and deployment of their National Guard, it makes equal 
sense for the mayor of the District of Columbia, with a population the 
size of a small state, to have the same authority.
  The mayor of the District of Columbia, as head of state, should have 
the authority to deploy the D.C. National Guard in instances that do 
not rise to the level of homeland defense activities. My bill permits 
the mayor to only deploy the D.C. National Guard after consultation 
with the Commanding General of the D.C. National Guard. The bill is 
another important step toward completing the transfer of full self-
government powers to the District of Columbia. Congress began that 
process with the passage of the Home Rule Act of 1973, when it 
delegated most of its authority over District agencies to the District 
of Columbia. The bill follows that model.
  I urge my colleagues to support the bill.

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