Van Hollen Leads 40 Colleagues in Introducing D.C. Statehood Bill

Today, U.S. Senator Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) introduced the District of Columbia statehood bill for the 119^th Congress in the Senate with the support of 40 of his colleagues, following Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton’s (D-D.C.) introduction of the bill in the U.S. House of Representatives. The bills are numbered S. 51 and H.R. 51, respectively, highlighting the lawmakers’ effort to admit Washington, D.C. into the Union as its 51^st state. Senator Van Hollen has taken the helm on the bill in the Senate after the retirement of the longtime Senate lead, Senator Tom Carper (D-Del.), who had introduced the Senate companion bill since 2013, retired at the end of the 118^th Congress.

“Every American should have a full vote in our country’s future, but we fall short of this promise every day that the residents of the District of Columbia are denied that right in Congress and subjected to taxation without representation. We must grant the District statehood – the people who live in our nation’s capital deserve the same basic political rights afforded to citizens across the fifty states. I’ve been proud to work with Senator Carper in the effort to deliver equality and fairness to the residents of D.C., and I look forward to carrying it forward alongside Congresswoman Norton, who has championed this fight for decades,” said Senator Van Hollen.

In the Senate, this legislation is cosponsored by Senators Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), Gary Peters (D-Mich.), Angela Alsobrooks (D-Md.), Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.), Michael Bennet (D-Colo.), Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Cory Booker (D-N.J.), Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.), Chris Coons (D-Del.), Catherine Cortez-Masto (D-Nev.), Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.), Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.), Maggie Hassan (D-N.H.), Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.), John Hickenlooper (D-Colo.), Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii), Tim Kaine (D-Va.), Andy Kim (D-N.J.), Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), Ben Ray Luján (D-N.M.), Ed Markey (D-Mass.), Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), Chris Murphy (D-Conn.), Patty Murray (D-Wash.), Alex Padilla (D-Calif.), Jack Reed (D-R.I.), Jacky Rosen (D-Nev.), Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii), Adam Schiff (D-Calif.), Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.), Elissa Slotkin (D-Mich.), Tina Smith (D-Minn.), Mark Warner (D-Va.), Raphael Warnock (D-Ga.), Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), Peter Welch (D-Vt.), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.), and Ron Wyden (D-Ore.).

“Thank you to Senator Carper, who chose to include D.C. residents among the Americans he served in his distinguished career,” Norton said. “Under his leadership, the first-ever Senate hearing on the bill was held – an important step in the legislative process. D.C. residents will not soon forget his service.

“Senator Van Hollen’s work and vocal support for D.C. residents’ right to voting representation in Congress and full self-government have not gone unnoticed as he has co-led the statehood effort in the Senate with Senator Carper. As he takes over primary Senate leadership of the bill, D.C. residents can be confident they have a resolute, persuasive, and trustworthy advocate for their rights in the chamber.

“At the beginning of two years under a Republican-held Congress and presidency, our conviction must be strong. To be content with less than statehood is to concede the equality of citizenship that is the birthright of D.C. residents as American citizens. Although we face a challenge in the short term, I'll continue to seek statehood for the Americans I am honored to represent.”

The full text of the bill is available here.