[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 35, Number 39 (Monday, October 4, 1999)]
[Pages 1846-1847]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
Message to the House of Representatives Returning Without Approval the 
``District of Columbia Appropriations Act, 2000''

September 28, 1999

To the House of Representatives:

    I am returning herewith without my approval, H.R. 2587, the 
``District of Columbia Appropriations Act, 2000.'' Although the bill 
provides important funding for the District of Columbia, I am vetoing 
this bill because it includes a number of highly objectionable 
provisions that are unwarranted intrusions into local citizens' 
decisions about local matters.
    I commend the Congress for developing a bill that includes requested 
funding for the District of Columbia. The bill includes essential 
funding for District Courts and Corrections and the D.C. Offender 
Supervision Agency and goes a long way toward providing requested funds 
for a new tuition assistance program for District of Columbia residents. 
I appreciate the additional funding included in the bill to promote the 
adoption of children in the District's foster care system, to support 
the Children's National Medical Center, to assist the Metropolitan 
Police Department in eliminating open-air drug trafficking in the 
District, and for drug testing and treatment, among other programs.
    However, I am disappointed that the Congress has added to the bill a 
number of highly objectionable provisions that would interfere with 
local decisions about local matters. Were it not for these provisions, I 
would sign the bill into law. Many of the Members who voted for this 
legislation represent States and localities that do not impose similar 
restrictions on their own citizens. I urge the Congress to remove the 
following provisions expeditiously to prevent the interruption of 
important funding for the District of Columbia:
<bullet>    Voting Representation. H.R. 2587 would prohibit not only the 
            use of Federal, but also District funds to provide 
            assistance for petition drives or civil action that seek to 
            obtain voting representation in the Congress for residents 
            of the District of Columbia.

<bullet>    Limit on Access to Representation in Special Education 
            Cases. The bill would cap the award of plaintiffs' 
            attorneys' fees in cases brought by parents of District 
            schoolchildren against the District of Columbia Public 
            Schools under the Individuals with Disabilities Education 
            Act (IDEA). In the long run, this provision would likely 
            limit the access of the District's poor families to quality 
            legal representation, thus impairing their due process 
            protections provided by the IDEA.

<bullet>    Abortion. The bill would prohibit the use of not only 
            Federal, but also District funds to pay for abortions except 
            in those cases where the life of the mother is endangered or 
            in situations involving rape or incest.

<bullet>    Domestic Partners Act. The bill would prohibit the use of 
            not only Federal, but also District funds to implement or 
            enforce the Health Care Benefits Expansion Act of 1992.

<bullet>    Needle Exchange Programs. The bill contains a ban that would 
            seriously disrupt current AIDS/HIV prevention efforts by 
            prohibiting the use of Federal and local funds for needle 
            exchange programs. H.R. 2587 denies not only Federal, but 
            also District funding to any public or private agency, 
            including providers of HIV/AIDS-related services, in the 
            District of Columbia that uses the public or private 
            agency's own funds for needle exchange programs, undermining 
            the principle of home rule in the District.

<bullet>    Controlled Substances. The bill would prohibit the District 
            from legislating with respect to certain controlled 
            substances, in a manner that all States are free to do.

[[Page 1847]]

<bullet>    Restriction on City Council Salaries. The bill would limit 
            the amount of salary that can be paid to members of the 
            District of Columbia Council.
    I urge the Congress to send me a bill that maintains the important 
funding for the District provided in this bill and that eliminates these 
highly objectionable provisions as well as other provisions that 
undermine the ability of residents of the District of Columbia to make 
decisions about local matters.
                                            William J. Clinton
The White House,
September 28, 1999.