[Congressional Record Volume 163, Number 36 (Wednesday, March 1, 2017)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E261-E262]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




           INTRODUCTION OF THE WASHINGTON, D.C. ADMISSION ACT

                                 ______
                                 

                       HON. ELEANOR HOLMES NORTON

                      of the district of columbia

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, March 1, 2017

  Ms. NORTON. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to introduce the Washington, 
D.C. Admission Act with 115 original cosponsors, a record number. This 
is the most important bill I introduce each Congress, and it is 
especially meaningful this time in light of the historic results of the 
District of Columbia's statehood referendum last November. District 
voters overwhelmingly voted in favor of the referendum, which advises 
the D.C. Council to petition Congress for statehood. Residents are more 
energized than ever before to continue this momentum for statehood, 
equality, and self-determination. District residents have always been 
citizens of the United States but remain the only federal income 
taxpaying Americans who do not have full and equal citizenship rights. 
The denial of local control of local matters and of equal 
representation in the Congress of the United States can be remedied 
only by statehood.
  Therefore, I am introducing the Washington, D.C. Admission Act to 
create a state from essentially the eight home-town wards of the 
District of Columbia. This 51st state, of course, would have no 
jurisdiction over the federal territory or enclave that now consists of 
the Washington that Members of Congress and visitors associate with the 
capital of our country. The U.S. Capitol Complex, the principal federal 
monuments, federal buildings and grounds, the National Mall, the White 
House, and other federal property here would remain under federal 
jurisdiction. Our bill provides that the State of Washington, D.C. 
would be equal to the other fifty states in all respects, as is always 
required, and that the residents of Washington, D.C. would have all the 
rights of citizenship as taxpaying American citizens, including two 
senators and, initially, one House member. The District of Columbia 
recognizes that it can enter the Union only on an equal basis and is 
prepared to do so.
  A substantially similar version of the Washington DC. Admission Act 
was the first bill I introduced after I was first sworn in as a Member 
of Congress in the 102nd Congress in 1991. Our first try for statehood 
received significant support in the House. In 1993, we got the first 
and only vote on statehood for the District, with nearly 60 percent of 
Democrats and one Republican voting for the bill. The Senate held a 
hearing on various approaches to representation, but the committee of 
jurisdiction did not proceed further. In the 113th Congress, our 
statehood bill got unprecedented momentum with the Senate's first-ever

[[Page E262]]

hearing on statehood, which was the first congressional hearing held on 
statehood in more than 20 years. The House held its hearing on 
statehood in 1993, and obtained a record number of cosponsors in the 
House and Senate, including then-Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, as 
well as the other top three Democratic leaders in the Senate. In 
addition, President Obama endorsed D.C. statehood in a public forum 
before the statehood hearing was held.
  Statehood is the only alternative for the citizens of the District of 
Columbia. To be content with less than statehood is to concede the 
equality of citizenship that is the birthright of our residents as 
citizens of the United States. That is a concession no American citizen 
has ever made, and one D.C. residents will not make as they approach 
the 216th year in their fight for equal treatment in their country. 
This bill reaffirms our determination to obtain each and every right 
enjoyed by citizens of the United States, by becoming the 51st State in 
the Union.

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