Eleanor Holmes Norton: “I am happy to speak of my friendship with the chairman of our full committee, and I thank him for his kind words. I only…”

“I am happy to speak of my friendship with the chairman of our full committee, and I thank him for his kind words. I only hope he will come to where the two past immediate Republican chairs of the committee-- former-Chairman Davis and former-Chairman Darrell Issa--have come and, that is, to support budget autonomy for the District of Columbia. I rise in strong opposition to this bill. This bill, that would repeal a law approved by 83 percent of the District of Columbia voters, would nullify a court ruling and would permanently take away the authority of the 700,000 D.C. citizens and their elected officials to spend their local funds without congressional approval. This bill manages to be unprincipled and impractical at the same time. It is profoundly undemocratic for any Member of Congress in the 21st century to declare that he has authority over any other jurisdiction except his own. It also would harm the finances and operations of the District of Columbia. As a matter of fact, the District of Columbia Budget Autonomy Act is already in effect. The District Council has begun the process of passing its first local budget without the assistance of Federal overseers. Therefore, this bill would be the most significant reduction in the District's authority to govern itself since Congress granted the District limited home rule in 1973.…”