DC Vote Condemns the FY 2027 DC Appropriations Bill as an Attack on Home Rule

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Jeannette O’Connor, [email protected]

WASHINGTON, DC (April 21, 2026) – As the House Appropriations Committee prepares to vote this week on fiscal year 2027 funding for the District of Columbia, DC Vote is calling the measure an unacceptable attack on DC self-government. The bill would use Congress’s control over the District budget to override locally enacted laws on reproductive health, gun and traffic safety, climate policy, criminal justice reform, and more.

“This bill is a stark reminder that DC residents are still forced to live under a system in which lawmakers we do not elect can override the decisions of the people who do live in the District,” said Amy Vruno, Executive Director of DC Vote. “Congress is not simply debating federal spending. It is reaching into DC’s local affairs to nullify laws passed by our elected government and funded by our own local tax dollars. DC is already a donor jurisdiction, meaning DC residents pay more in federal taxes than we receive in federal funding services.”

“Many of the laws targeted in this bill were debated and passed by DC’s locally elected government—officials chosen by DC residents through free and fair elections. Congress is now attempting to repeal or defund those laws without a single vote from a DC resident. This is one of the most sweeping attacks on DC self-governance we have seen in years. It must stop.”

Below are some of the ways the House is trying to impose its will on DC residents without their consent:

Climate and Environment

• Would block DC from enforcing its adoption of vehicle emission standards, undermining efforts to reduce pollution and protect public health.
• Would block DC’s attorney general from using consumer protection laws to pursue oil and gas companies for environmental misrepresentation or deception, shielding polluters from accountability.

Gun Safety

• Would declare that anyone with a concealed carry permit from any state, regardless of how easy or strict that state’s permitting standards are, can carry a loaded concealed weapon anywhere in DC and on the Metro system, effectively nullifying DC’s strict gun laws.

Policing Accountability and Criminal Justice Reform

• Would block DC from implementing its Comprehensive Policing and Justice Reform Act, the landmark 2022 law that included use-of-force restrictions, body camera requirements, civilian oversight, and limits on police union bargaining over discipline.
• Would repeal youth sentencing protections that allowed young adults up to age 24 to be treated as youth offenders eligible for rehabilitation rather than harsh adult mandatory minimums, meaning more young people would face harsher sentences.

Reproductive Rights and Gender Justice 

• Would repeal DC’s Human Rights Sanctuary Amendment Act. This shield law protects patients, doctors, and providers from out-of-state legal actions for receiving or providing reproductive and gender-affirming care that is legal in DC. Without this protection, providers could face legal jeopardy for delivering care that is entirely lawful in DC.
• Would block the Reproductive Health Non-Discrimination Amendment Act, which prohibits employers from firing or penalizing employees for reproductive health decisions made outside of work, including the use of contraception, fertility treatment, or abortion.
• Would block the Insurance Regulation Amendment Act of 2024, stripping insurance coverage protections for reproductive health care and gender-affirming care.

Transportation Safety

• Would eliminate DC’s automated traffic camera program—the same policy targeted by H.R. 5525—but through the appropriations process. See DC Vote’s statement on this, here.
• Would block the enforcement of DC’s right-turn-on-red ban, a pedestrian and cyclist safety measure.

Policing Accountability and Criminal Justice Reform

• Would block DC from implementing its Comprehensive Policing and Justice Reform Act, the landmark 2022 law that included use-of-force restrictions, body camera requirements, civilian oversight, and limits on police union bargaining over discipline.
• Would repeal youth sentencing protections that allowed young adults up to age 24 to be treated as youth offenders eligible for rehabilitation rather than harsh adult mandatory minimums, meaning more young people would face harsher sentences.

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About DC Vote

Founded in 1998, DC Vote is a national citizen engagement and advocacy organization dedicated to strengthening democracy and securing equality for all in the District of Columbia. Learn more at www.DCVote.org.