Stand with us to tell Congress #HandsoffDC. At a House Oversight and Government Reform Committee hearing on January 31, Chairman Rep. Jason Chaffetz (R-Utah) suggested exploring the idea of making residential parts of D.C. to Maryland. Immediately thereafter, DC residents and local elected officials used their voices and social media platforms to argue that Congress should stop interfering in DC affairs.
The District is home to 681,000 residents. D.C. residents pay federal and local taxes, fight in wars, and serve on juries but lack full congressional voting representation (legislative and budget autonomy). Legislation and the annual budget (For example, DC passed a $13.4 billion budget for FY17) must go to Congress for review before the laws go into effect.
Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton, our trailblazer in Congress who has fought tirelessly for DC residents has pushed for statehood for decades. On Voting Day, 79 percent of DC registered voters overwhelmingly voted for a referendum petitioning Congress to make DC the 51st state.
Call members of the U.S. House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform starting first with Chairman Jason Chaffetz at (202) 225-7751. You can also take these five actions as well: