[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 35, Number 44 (Monday, November 8, 1999)]
[Page 2241]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
Statement on District of Columbia Appropriations Legislation

November 3, 1999

    After bipartisan negotiations to resolve the District of Columbia 
appropriations bill, Congress and my administration agreed to provide 
essential funding for the District while modifying some of the most 
objectionable provisions infringing on the rights of local citizens to 
make decisions about local matters--the principle of home rule.
    I would have signed this legislation, but the House attached to it 
highly objectionable legislation that would have failed to fund 
important priorities in education, health, and other areas and would 
have resulted in an across-the-board cut in funding for important 
programs from defense and veterans' programs to education, law 
enforcement, and the environment.
    Unfortunately, the House voted today on a replacement DC bill that 
runs contrary to the earlier bipartisan agreement and undercuts the 
progress that has been made for the benefit of the people of the 
District of Columbia. The consensus bill on the District passed by both 
Houses remains acceptable to me, and I would sign it if it were 
presented as a stand-alone bill or unattached to objectionable 
legislation. I urge Congress to act for the benefit of the citizens of 
the District and our Nation's Capital by sending me the agreed-upon 
legislation, unencumbered by objectionable legislation or provisions.