The COG Board of Directors unanimously approved a resolution urging Congress to “establish the state of Washington, D.C. without delay” during its April 2021 meeting.
News Release
The Board of Directors of the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments unanimously approved a resolution urging Congress to “establish the state of Washington, D.C. without delay.” The COG Board is comprised of elected officials from 24 area governments representing the District of Columbia, suburban Maryland, and Northern Virginia.
The resolution notes that the District of Columbia lacks full representation in Congress even though the District exceeds the population of two states, anchors a metropolitan statistical area that is the sixth largest in the nation, and its residents pay annual federal taxes of more than $27.5 billion – more per capita than any state. The resolution also calls out the injustice of denying full voting rights to the District’s diverse population of 712,000 residents, a majority of which are Black and other people of color.
“Residents of the District of Columbia have fought in our nation’s wars like full citizens, have paid taxes like full citizens, have acted like full citizens in every respect, but we are not treated as full citizens,” said COG Board Chair and D.C. Councilmember Robert C. White Jr. “D.C. residents deserve statehood and equality, and I am so proud to have the support of my regional colleagues as we stand together united for this cause.”
The resolution was approved on the same day as the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Oversight and Reform is marking up and voting on the District of Columbia Statehood Bill (H.R. 51), introduced by U.S. Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton (DC). Before the resolution was approved, U.S. Congressman Gerry Connolly (VA-11), U.S. Senator Chris Van Hollen (MD), and D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser addressed the board.
“It is time to right this 220-year-old wrong and finally end taxation without representation in Washington, D.C.,” said D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser. “We know that when Washington, D.C. becomes the 51st state, when we get a vote in the House and representation in the Senate, that will make our entire region stronger. We thank Chairwoman Maloney and Congresswoman Norton for today’s markup, and we are grateful to have the support of the Council of Governments, and especially our neighbors in Maryland and Virginia.”
“The District of Columbia’s population, a majority of which is Black and other people of color, bear all the responsibilities required of national citizenship, while being denied the rights afforded to residents of all other states,” said Prince George’s County Council Member Derrick L. Davis, who served as co-chair of a COG task force that studied the statehood issue and crafted the COG resolution. “It’s long past time to address the disenfranchisement and advance equity.”
“Statehood benefits our neighbors in Washington D.C., but it also benefits all of us in the entire National Capital Region,” said Arlington County Board Member Christian Dorsey, who also served as co-chair of the task force. “Statehood means better representation for all of our shared priorities in Congress, a greater ability to ensure the safety of our public, and a more equitable share of federal funding to combat crises like COVID-19.”
For example, the COG Board wrote to Congress last April calling for additional funding for the District of Columbia since the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act allocation of $500 million to the District was less than half of the minimum $1.25 billion guaranteed to each state—shortchanging the nation’s capital.
The COG D.C. Statehood Task Force also included: Phyllis J. Randall, Loudoun County Board of Supervisors Chair; Kate Stewart, City of Takoma Park Mayor; Denise Mitchell, City of College Park Councilmember; Reuben B. Collins, II, Board of Charles County Commissioners President; Rodney Lusk, Fairfax County Supervisor; Justin Wilson, City of Alexandria Mayor; and Phil Mendelson, District of Columbia Council Chair.
“I believe D.C. statehood is a fairness issue, an equity issue, and an American issue. Taxation without representation is Un-American and wrong,” said Loudoun County Board of Supervisors Chair Phyllis J. Randall.
"Statehood will ensure D.C. residents become fully vested citizens in the United States of America,” said Board of Charles County Commissioners President Reuben B. Collins, II. “It's time to right this historical wrong.”
Throughout its history, COG has supported the expansion of political rights for District of Columbia residents, dating back to its advocacy for Home Rule in the 1970s.
D.C. Statehood Videos / Social Media
Media Highlights
Regional leaders endorse D.C. statehood (InsideNoVa)
DC Statehood Endorsed For First Time By Washington Area Leaders (Patch)
House committee approves D.C. statehood, setting up likely passage in the full chamber (Resolution referenced in The Washington Post)