6045833 Resolution 21-292, Sense of the Council in Support of a "Statehood or Else" Signature Campaign Resolution of 2015

A RESOLUTION

                                                        

21-292

 

IN THE COUNCIL OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA

 

December 1, 2015        

 

 

 

To declare the sense of the Council in support of the development of a “Statehood or Else” multimedia campaign that produces a petition supporting District of Columbia statehood, collects one million signatures for the petition, and delivers the petition to the White House, to all 535 members of Congress, and to leadership at both the 2016 Republican National Convention and the 2016 Democratic National Convention.

 

            RESOLVED, BY THE COUNCIL OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA, That this resolution may be cited as the “Sense of the Council in Support of a ‘Statehood or Else’ Signature Campaign Resolution of 2015”.

 

Sec. 2.  The Council finds that:

(1)  Without statehood, the District of Columbia will continue to be denied democratic equality and its citizens will continue to suffer taxation without representation;

(2)  Statehood is the most appropriate mechanism to grant the United States citizens who reside in the District of Columbia the full rights and privileges of American citizenship, which include not only equal representation in the United States House of Representatives and the United States Senate, but also full control over local affairs and budget autonomy;

(3)  The District of Columbia, with 658,893 residents, has a larger population than both Vermont and Wyoming;

(4)  The District of Columbia's gross domestic product is larger than that of New Mexico, Hawaii, West Virginia, New Hampshire, Idaho, Delaware, North Dakota, Alaska, Maine, South Dakota, Wyoming, Montana, Rhode Island, and Vermont;

 (5)  The District of Columbia’s local economy is one of the strongest in the nation with excellent credit ratings from Wall Street;

(6)  District of Columbia residents pay $1.6 billion a year in federal taxes, more per person than the residents of any state in the United States;

(7)  The District of Columbia has a $12.5 billion budget, larger than that of 12 states;

(8)  The New Columbia Statehood Commission (“Commission”), which consists of the Mayor, the Chairman of the Council, and the Statehood Delegation, should, within 30 days of the adoption of this resolution or as soon as feasible, create a "Statehood or Else" multimedia campaign and should work with Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton and other individuals in the public and government spheres that the Commission considers necessary or appropriate;

(9)  The goals of the “Statehood or Else” multimedia campaign should be to produce a petition supporting District of Columbia statehood and to collect at least one million signatures for the petition;

(10)  The 2016 Republican National Convention will convene in Cleveland, Ohio from July 18 to 21, 2016, and the 2016 Democratic National Convention will convene in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania from July 25 to 28, 2016;

(11)  Before each party chooses its nominees for President and Vice President of the United States for the 2016 election, copies of the petition supporting District of Columbia statehood should be delivered to the White House, to all 535 members of Congress, and to leadership at both the 2016 Republican National Convention and the 2016 Democratic National Convention to demonstrate the importance of statehood for the District of Columbia;

(12)  At a July 21, 2014 town-hall meeting regarding the My Brother's Keeper Initiative at Walker-Jones Education Campus in Washington, D.C., President Barack Obama publicly endorsed statehood for the District of Columbia;

(13)  District of Columbia Emancipation Day is the District of Columbia's only legal public holiday and commemorates the signing of the “District of Columbia Compensated Emancipation Act” on April 16, 1862, which ended slavery in Washington, D.C. and freed 3,100 individuals;

(14)  District of Columbia Emancipation Day is recognized annually on April 16th and reminds us to reaffirm our commitment to forge a more just and united country that truly reflects the ideals of its founders and instills in its people a broad sense of duty to be responsible and conscientious stewards of freedom and democracy;

(15)  In 2016, the entire nation will receive a 3-day tax-filing extension until Monday, April 18th because April 16th falls on a Saturday, causing the District officially to celebrate District of Columbia Emancipation Day on Friday, April 15, 2016.  Residents of Maine and Massachusetts will receive an additional one-day tax-filing extension until Tuesday, April 19, 2016, due to the fact that those states celebrate a state holiday on April 18th, known as Patriots’ Day, which commemorates the battles of Lexington and Concord in 1775.  This nationally recognized tax-filing extension is an opportunity to educate the nation on the importance of District of Columbia Emancipation Day;

(16)  President Barack Obama's last day as president will be January 20, 2017, and he should serve as the keynote speaker for the Emancipation Day Prayer Breakfast on Saturday, April 16, 2016, the final District of Columbia Emancipation Day celebration before his departure from office.

 

Sec. 3. It is the sense of the Council that the District of Columbia should further its efforts to achieve statehood by creating a “Statehood or Else” multimedia campaign that produces a petition supporting District of Columbia statehood, collects one million signatures for the petition, and delivers the petition to the White House, to all 535 members of Congress, and to leadership at both the 2016 Republican National Convention and the 2016 Democratic National Convention.

 

Sec. 4. The Council shall transmit copies of this resolution, upon its adoption, to the Mayor, the President of the United States, the Speaker of the United States House of Representatives, the President of the United States Senate, the District of Columbia Democratic State Committee, and the District of Columbia Republican Party.

 

Sec. 5. This resolution shall take effect immediately upon the first date of publication in the District of Columbia Register.