Eleanor Holmes Norton: “I want to thank you for this very important hearing.”

In my long career representing D.C. residents in Congress, I have rarely seen a bill as unreasonable and patronizing to the more than 700,000 people who live in the nation’s capital as this one.

Because there is no limit on how long personal information can be exploited, Congress must protect these federal employees and contractors in perpetuity.

D.C. has not been treated as a federal agency for funding purposes in more than 20 years precisely because doing so can force dramatic overnight cuts to essential services, including police, sanitation, and schools.

I urge Members to vote ``no.'' Mr. McGOVERN. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from New York (Mr. Goldman).