Why Can’t the District of Columbia Be a State?

District or state?

Local Control – “The Constitution gave Congress complete legislative control over the District, but residents have long been pushing for more self-governance,” notes the NTU’s weekly newsletter The Taxpayers’ Tab. ““Reforms over the years have bestowed more power to the city's voters and elected officials, but residents still live under a hybrid of home rule and federal oversight. Most recently in 1973, the Home Rule Act gave the District government autonomy to pass local laws and set a budget, but all remain subject to Congressional review. Efforts for more local control continue. In the 113th Congress, legislation has been introduced to increase the powers of local D.C. government:

District or state?

To ensure the District is properly funded, H.R. 1196, the District of Columbia Local Funds Continuation Act, would allow city spending to occur based on the previous year's federal appropriation in the event Congress does not approve a new budget. Then, H.R. 345, the District of Columbia Budget Autonomy Act of 2013, was sponsored to completely separate D.C.'s financial management from Congressional oversight. If enacted, H.R. 603, the District of Columbia District Attorney Establishment Act of 2013, would establish a District Attorney office with exclusive authority over D.C.'s local laws. And H.R. 2321, the District of Columbia National Guard Home Rule Act, would grant the Mayor of D.C. the same authority over the D.C. National Guard that state governors have. Each proposal was sponsored by Delegate Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC) in the current Congress.

Buddha takes Beliefnet’s Politic-O-Matic quiz …

OK, we admit, Siddhārtha Gautama Buddha did not actually log in and take Beliefnet’s fun self-diagnostic exam. But we were curious whether he was a Republican or a Democrat. So, we focused on a lotus blossom and with a small measure of enlightenment, attempted to take the test on behalf of the Sage of the Śākyas. Read next feature >