YourVoice.Now Summary
Civil LibertiesTransparency & AccountabilityWould give Congress 60 days instead of 30 to cancel D.C. laws — and new power to cancel the mayor's orders.
Civil Liberties
Today Congress has 30 days to review a new D.C. law, not counting weekends and holidays. The bill would give it 60 days, and weekends and holidays would count toward that total.
Today Congress must reject a whole D.C. act or none of it. The bill would let it strike single parts, then come back later for other parts of the same act.
A new section would make the mayor send every executive order, and every rule written by a D.C. agency, to both chambers. Each would wait 60 days, and Congress could cancel it by passing a resolution the President signs.
The bill would bar the council from taking an act back after it sends the act to Congress. Any attempt to withdraw would be ignored, and the review would go ahead.
If Congress cancels a D.C. act after this bill becomes law, the council could not send back an act that is substantially the same. Only a later act of Congress could lift that block.
D.C. can pass emergency acts that start at once and run up to 90 days. Under the bill, an act extending one would go through the full 60-day review before taking effect.
Transparency & Accountability
They would appear once a year before the House Oversight Committee and the Senate Homeland Security Committee. They would report on the state of the District and recommend steps they think are needed.
More about this bill
If you live in Washington, D.C., new local laws would take longer to take effect. Congress would also find it easier to cancel them. Congress already reviews D.C. laws before they start. That review would stretch from 30 days to 60 days. Congress could also cancel single parts of a D.C. law, not just the whole act. People outside the District would see no direct change. For the first time, Congress could reach the mayor's own actions. The mayor would have to send each executive order and agency rule to Congress. Each one would wait 60 days before taking effect. D.C. can also pass emergency acts that start right away. Renewing one would no longer skip the review. The council could not pull a law back after sending it to Congress. If Congress cancels a law, the council could not pass a similar one again. Cancellation votes would also move faster in both chambers. One senator could pull such a vote out of committee after 20 days. Senate debate would be capped at 10 hours, so a simple majority could pass it. The mayor and council chair would testify to House and Senate committees once a year. The changes would apply to D.C. laws and orders sent to Congress after the bill becomes law.
Congressional Summary
District of Columbia Home Rule Improvement Act This bill establishes a uniform 60-day period of congressional review for all nonemergency legislation enacted by the District of Columbia (DC). It also authorizes congressional disapproval of DC regulations and other executive actions, specific provisions in legislation, and extensions of emergency legislation. Currently, DC legislation is generally subject to a 30-day period of congressional review during which time Congress may enact a joint resolution of disapproval to nullify the legislation. Legislation involving criminal law is subject to a 60-day period of congressional review. Emergency legislation is not subject to congressional review. The bill applies a 60-day period of congressional review to all DC legislation other than emergency legislation. It also authorizes Congress to nullify (1) extensions of emergency DC legislation, and (2) one or more discrete provisions in DC legislation. The bill prohibits the DC Council from withdrawing legislation that it has transmitted to Congress for review or enacting legislation that is substantially the same as legislation that Congress disapproved. The bill also establishes a 60-day period of congressional review for DC executive orders and regulations according to procedures comparable to those for legislation. The bill additionally specifies the procedures for expedited consideration of joint resolutions of disapproval for DC legislation in each chamber, particularly the Senate. Finally, the bill requires the DC Mayor and the chair of the DC Council to present a report on DC to specified congressional committees at least once every calendar year.
Legislative Subjects
Details
- Congress
- 119th
- Chamber
- House
- Status
- summarized
- Action
- Introduced in House
- Action Date
- 2025-09-08
- Date Added
- 2026-05-02
- Source
- Congress.gov →
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