[Congressional Record Volume 171, Number 6 (Monday, January 13, 2025)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E22-E23]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




   INTRODUCTION OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA PROSECUTOR HOME RULE ACT

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                       HON. ELEANOR HOLMES NORTON

                      of the district of columbia

                    in the house of representatives

                        Monday, January 13, 2025

  Ms. NORTON. Mr. Speaker, today, I introduce the District of Columbia 
Prosecutor Home Rule Act, which would give D.C. the authority to 
prosecute all crimes committed under its laws. Congress already allows 
D.C. to write D.C. criminal laws and allows D.C. to enforce them 
against some violators. Congress should allow D.C. to enforce D.C. laws 
against all violators. This bill would effectuate a 2002 advisory 
referendum, approved by 82 percent of D.C. voters, to create a local 
prosecutor's office.
  Currently, the U.S. Attorney for D.C. has the authority to prosecute 
most D.C. crimes committed by adults and some by juveniles, while the 
D.C. Attorney General has the authority to prosecute most D.C. crimes 
committed by juveniles and some by adults. Giving D.C. the authority to 
prosecute all D.C. crimes would not only give D.C. residents a say in 
the enforcement of all their laws, it also would save the federal 
government tens of millions of dollars a year by reducing the number of 
assistant U.S. attorneys in the U.S. Attorney's Office for D.C.
  In the 117th Congress, the House Committee on Oversight and Reform 
passed this bill as part of my District of Columbia Home Rule Expansion 
Act of 2022.
  I urge my colleagues to support this bill.

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