[Congressional Record Volume 171, Number 70 (Monday, April 28, 2025)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E341-E342]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




 INTRODUCTION OF THE REQUIREMENT OF THE DIRECTOR OF THE COURT SERVICES 
 AND OFFENDER SUPERVISION AGENCY FOR THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA AND THE 
DIRECTOR OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA PRETRIAL SERVICES AGENCY TO RESIDE 
                      IN THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA

                                 ______
                                 

                       HON. ELEANOR HOLMES NORTON

                      of the district of columbia

                    in the house of representatives

                         Monday, April 28, 2025

  Ms. NORTON. Mr. Speaker, today, I introduce a bill that would require 
the Directors of two federal agencies, the Court Services and Offender 
Supervision Agency for the District of Columbia (CSOSA) and the 
District of Columbia Pretrial Services Agency (PSA), to reside in the 
District of Columbia during their terms. There are residency 
requirements for government positions in federal law, D.C. law and the 
laws of jurisdictions throughout the United States. The primary reason 
such laws exist is to ensure that certain government officials have a 
connection to the residents they serve and in-depth knowledge of the 
unique issues and challenges these residents face. The House Committee 
on Oversight and Reform passed this bill in the 117th Congress.
  CSOSA and PSA are federal agencies that focus exclusively on D.C. 
CSOSA supervises individuals on probation, parole or supervised release 
for violations of D.C. law. PSA makes recommendations regarding 
pretrial release and supervises defendants for the D.C. Superior Court 
and the U.S. District Court for D.C. The Directors of CSOSA and PSA 
should be

[[Page E342]]

required to be D.C. residents since these agencies serve only D.C.
  Congress has justifiably required that certain federal officials live 
in the jurisdictions to which they are appointed, including U.S. 
district court judges, U.S. Marshals and U.S. Attorneys. Similarly, 
Congress, which controls the local D.C. court system, has justifiably 
required local D.C. judges and members of the D.C. Judicial Nomination 
Commission and the D.C. Commission on Judicial Disabilities and Tenure 
to reside in D.C.
  There is no reason that the Directors of CSOSA and PSA should not be 
required to live in D.C. These federal officials need to be part of the 
community they serve. A D.C. residency requirement for these federal 
officials will lead to better outcomes in the criminal justice system 
and is a matter of fairness for D.C. residents.
  I urge my colleagues to support this bill.

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