Stopped Gun Law Repeal—Again
The NRA tried and failed for the fourth time to repeal D.C.'s gun safety laws. This time Norton had to beat back not one but two different measures that threatened to bring more guns to D.C. streets: a bill for total repeal of D.C.'s handgun laws that she worked successfully to block on the House floor; and a weaker rider provision to allow shotguns and rifles that the House passed but Norton worked to stop in the Senate and knocked out in the final conference bill.
D.C. Mid-year Budget Autonomy Bill a Major Home Rule Gain
The Norton Semi-annual D.C. Budget Autonomy bill was passed as part of the D.C. Omnibus Authorization Act of 2005 and is likely to pass in the Senate early next year. The first budget freedom from any part of the congressional appropriations process, this bill enacts an important section of the D.C. Budget Autonomy Act. Passage of this mid-year provision gives the full budget autonomy bill, sponsored by Norton and Rep. Tom Davis (R-VA), a head-start on passage in 2006 to achieve the same freedom from the annual congressional appropriations process that redundantly requires the District's balanced budget to be enacted by Congress before it becomes effective.
Norton believes she is close to passage of the full Act, considering her success in getting D.C.'s local budget for the coming year automatically released on time for the third year in a row, even though the federal budget has repeatedly been held up for months. This change has disentangled the local D.C. budget from the federal budget and has allowed the city to fully operate on its local budget at the increased levels passed by the Council rather than on a prior year's continuing resolution, and therefore to meet increased expenditures, operate new programs and keep city agencies running smoothly.
Renewed Tax Credits for D.C. Homebuyers and Businesses
Norton was able to keep her D.C.-only $5,000 homebuyer and business tax incentives from expiring by successfully keeping them in a national package of tax cuts passed by both Houses. The credits are now awaiting conference passage and are likely to be retroactive. These tax incentives are credited with stabilizing the city's population by stemming the near-catastrophic taxpayer flight of recent decades and by bringing and keeping businesses in the city, where the cost of doing business often is otherwise significantly higher than in the suburbs. Thousands of residents and jobs have resulted, as the credits became a magnet for renters to buy here and others to move to D.C. instead of the suburbs and for businesses to remain and come to D.C., using the D.C. tax incentives unavailable elsewhere. One of the most important incentives in the bill is a significant credit for every D.C. resident employed or hired.
D.C.'s Reserve Funds Freed
For the first time since the Control Board period, a Norton provision passed the House allowing the District to tap its emergency and contingency reserve funds, provided they are reimbursed. Norton's success followed repeated attempts to get Congress to relax this uniquely strict limitation that kept large amounts accumulating and untouchable, while immediate, vital needs, such as dilapidated schools, angered residents.
40% Increase in Transportation Funds
Norton worked hard against threats to D.C.'s per capita funding in the reauthorized Transportation bill (SAFETEA-LU) bill and maintained the city's top amount in the country. Despite many cuts in the long awaited bill, D.C. received a 40% increase over the last reauthorization and Norton also was able to secure millions of dollars for extra projects, as a senior member of the Transportation Committee. Particularly noteworthy is her achievement of the first racial profiling provision in federal law, with funding to encourage states and localities to enact and enforce their own racial profiling laws. Among the projects that will benefit from the extra TEA-LU funds are the South Capitol Street and 11th Street bridges, the Metro Branch Trail and other critical infrastructure.
Norton Bill Gets Reagan National Fully Open
The top Transportation Security Administration official called Norton this spring with word that general aviation (charter and small plane service) would be resumed at National, implementing her bill for full reopening as passed two years ago in the Federal Aviation Administration reauthorization. Norton recruited the leadership of the Transportation Committee to continue the fight when the Bush administration initially ignored her amendment. As the only regional member on the Aviation Subcommittee, Norton had tried since shortly after 9/11 to fully open general aviation, concerned that Reagan, despite unique safeguards, was the only airport in the country where full service had not been restored.
House Moves Anacostia River Amendments
An important section of Norton's comprehensive bill to clean up the Anacostia River was passed by the House in the Water Resources Development Act. The Norton amendment requires the Army Corps of Engineers to coordinate regional development of a 10-year comprehensive action plan for restoration of the Anacostia and its tributaries. Norton seized the opportunity to press forward this section of the first comprehensive Anacostia bill in the Water Resources Committee, on which she serves. She believes that a federal statutory coordinator is necessary to get Maryland, Virginia and the District to move together on a single plan and on local funding, the predicate for the $250 million authorization in her bill. Combined sewer overflow remediation is a major part of the bill and a major cause of Anacostia pollution.
D.C. Benefits from Appropriations Committee Changes
Norton successfully fought for the best deal for D.C. in 2005, when the House Appropriations Committee eliminated three subcommittees, including the separate D.C. appropriations subcommittee. She succeeded in getting D.C. included with the subcommittee most favorable to the District, the Subcommittee on Transportation, Treasury, HUD, the Judiciary, District of Columbia, and Independent Agencies. As part of this large subcommittee, D.C. receives far less oversight than in the old House D.C. appropriations subcommittee, which had a long history of home rule interference. Norton worked successfully with Senate Chairman Thad Cochran (MS), however, to retain the Senate D.C. appropriations subcommittee because of its tradition of helping to achieve important pro- home rule breakthroughs, such as the Budget Autonomy bill, which passed the Senate in December of 2003.
Congress Enacts Norton Bill Naming Federal Courthouse Annex for Judge Bryant
After more than two years of repeated efforts, Norton was successful in naming the new federal courthouse annex at 3rd and Constitution Avenue, NW for Federal District Court Judge William B. Bryant, a graduate of the D.C. public schools and the first African American to serve as Chief Judge of the U.S. District Court, and the first Black Assistant U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia. Bryant won important federal and Supreme Court cases as a distinguished lawyer when the D.C. Bar Association did not admit blacks. Norton worked with colleagues in the Senate to break a logjam and add the Bryant naming bill as an amendment to a bill naming a federal building in Detroit for Rosa Parks.
Extra Appropriations for D.C.
Despite the tense atmosphere and divisions in Congress on controversial budget cuts and tax cut measures, Norton has been able to work with appropriators to obtain extra funding for D.C. projects and organizations. Among the most important are $650,000 for the Whitman-Walker Clinic, which serves people with HIV and AIDS, at a time when the agency is still recovering from a funding crisis; a $123 million authorization for restoration of the Frederick Douglass Bridge and the South Capitol Street corridor; and $1 million for Washington Hospital Center's Bioterrorism Preparedness Program, a project Norton began working on after 9-11, with continuing appropriations each year. Other Norton appropriation wins included critical continuing funding for Norton's college tuition assistance grants (TAG), annual police reimbursement for national demonstrations, funds for a bioterrorism and forensics lab, and sewer overflow funding to repair and upgrade the District's antiquated combined sewer system.
Secure TRAINS Amendments Move
Spurred by concern for Metro, rail, and Union Station security and the refusal of the federal government to reroute toxic cargo freight, Norton has become the Congressional leader on public transportation security and the lead sponsor of the Secure TRAINS Act. She got two important amendments from the Act adopted as part of the Homeland Security reauthorization bill. They require the Department of Homeland Security to develop security best practices to be used by mass transportation operators and to develop a national plan for passenger and employee awareness to prevent and respond to terrorist acts on public transportation. Norton believes that the Madrid and London attacks demonstrate that terrorists have moved their focus and understand that public transportation, with 9 billion passenger trips annually, is what the people ride.
Postal Service Action for Workers
When Norton's questions at a Postal Service hearing revealed a lack of ventilation and air conditioning at the huge V Street facility, for fear of spreading anthrax, the Postal Service agreed to hasten the installation of state-of-the-art equipment. Afterwards, Norton inspected the facility, met with union and management employees, and visited with employees.
Rosa Parks Honors
After working with other members of the Congressional Black Caucus to give civil rights pioneer Rosa Parks the honor of being the first woman to lie in honor in the Capitol Rotunda, Norton presided at the Memorial Service for Ms. Parks at the Metropolitan A.M.E. Church. In her nationally-televised remarks, the Congresswoman spoke of Ms. Parks' gift of non-violent protest, especially to "the residents of the District of Columbia, who still feed from her inspiration to achieve equality with other Americans, including equal voting rights in the Congress."
Prescription Drugs and Social Security: Helping Senior through the Benefits & Risks
A new bill benefiting seniors--the prescription drugs bill--and an initiative threatening their benefits--the Bush plan to privatize Social Security-- resulted in record turn-outs for three special Norton town meetings this year. Two town meetings on the prescription drug bill helped seniors through the puzzling array of options and traps in the controversial prescription drugs bill. Norton's Social Security Town meeting emphasized that not only seniors but many children and survivors were at risk. Of all Social Security recipients, 30% are children, other family members and survivors, and temporarily and permanently disabled people. Democratic town meetings like Norton's exposed Bush's plan for making Social Security funding issues worse and pushed the plan from the national agenda.
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