WHEREAS:
The 670,000 residents of the District of Columbia, which is more populous than the states of Wyoming and Vermont, have no Senators and no voting member in the House of Representatives; and
WHEREAS:
Over 8,000 AFSCME members both current and retired as well as their families are among these disenfranchised citizens that work and pay their taxes just like any other American; and
WHEREAS:
District of Columbia residents pay among the highest per capita federal taxes in the nation, coining the phrase “Taxation without Representation” and more than 200,000 D.C. residents have served in the federal armed services protecting our country from foreign and domestic individuals that have sought to do our country harm; and
WHEREAS:
Congress repeatedly interferes with the District of Columbia’s limited self-government by enacting laws on how the District of Columbia spends its locally raised tax revenue, including barring the usage of locally raised revenue; and
WHEREAS:
The District of Columbia has timely passed a balanced budget for each of the last 20 years, it still faces the possibility of being shut down yearly because of Congressional deliberations over the federal budget; and
WHEREAS:
The residents of the District of Columbia have endorsed statehood for the District of Columbia, and passed a District-wide referendum on budget autonomy.
THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED:
That AFSCME calls upon the President of the United States and the Congress to approve federal legislation that will provide the residents of the District of Columbia with the same rights to self government enjoyed by other Americans including local budget autonomy, legislative autonomy and statehood.
SUBMITTED BY: Andrew D. Washington, Executive Director and Delegate
AFSCME Council 20
Corey Upchurch, President and Delegate
LaTonya Graham, Recording Secretary and Delegate
AFSCME Local 1959, Council 20
District of Columbia