Considering all the furor over the District’s $11.9 million loss on today’s inaugural festivities, the ways and means employed by the D.C. government to attain funds and make policy deserve a closer look. Washington is a unique experiment in our country-both a city and a federal agency. Since the 1970s, when D.C. was granted limited sovereignty in its affairs, getting things done has been a combination of pulling congressional strings and working with D.C.’s citizens.
The city gets funding by taxing its own citizens, but the federal government’s presence in the city creates large expenditures on security, infrastructure and transportation issues that wouldn’t normally need to be addressed by a community of Washington’s size. The House Appropriations subcommittee controls funding to assist with these needs, but more importantly, Congress retains the ability to veto any and all legislature passed by the D.C. Council, no matter what the city’s 500,000 residents want.
This situation leads to a fair amount of abuse by our Congressional occupiers. This year, supporters of gambling in the District have gathered signatures for an initiative to legalize slot machines, but even if they convince the city to approve it-a distinct possibility-it is unlikely that slot machines will appear. Congressional leaders have promised to kill any attempt to allow gambling.
Sometimes Congressional shenanigans work out for District citizens. In 1998, Representative Randy “Duke” Cunningham (R-CA) diverted $3 million in federal funding to refurbish the fish market and surrounding marinas in Southwest D.C., where, coincidentally, he lives onboard a 65-foot yacht.
Prior to the 1974 enactment of the Home Rule Charter, D.C. was supervised by a variety of presidential commissioners, but the power remained still in the hands of the Congressional Committees. That year, former Commissioner Walter Washington (D) was elected the first Mayor of the District. Washington proved his competence to the federal government by maintaining calm in the turbulent city, famously refusing to authorize the National Guard to shoot at looters during riots following the assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr. Later, he eased tensions after a Muslim sect violently took over District government buildings. In addition to his leadership, Washington made a point of establishing good relationships with members of Congress that led to benefits and funding for the District.
Despite the best efforts of Washington’s successors, many feel that more extensive home rule is necessary, and agitate for statehood and the right to send a voting representative to Congress. Currently, Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes-Norton (D) acts as a delegate without voting rights. The city government reminds its citizens to support this goal by placing “Taxation without Representation” on car license plates-the only American city still fighting that battle.
