House Hearing, 117th Congress - H.R. 51: Making D.C. the 51st State

A hearing before the House Committee on Oversight and Reform on March 22, 2021

U.S. House of Representatives. House Hearing, 117th Congress - H.R. 51: Making D.C. the 51st State. Washington, D.C., Government Publishing Office, 2021. Online, https://www.govinfo.gov/app/details/CHRG-117hhrg43960/CHRG-117hhrg43960/summary, (Accessed November 19, 2021).

“The simple truth is that the right to democracy should not be contingent on party registration. Today, I urge all members of this panel to rise above partisanship. I encourage everyone to have a respectful and robust debate with the fundamental goals of our Founders in mind. As President Abraham Lincoln declared in the Gettysburg Address, a true democracy is government of the people, by the people, and for the people.” -Chairwoman Maloney

In this Hearing before the Committee on Oversight and Reform in the House of Representatives, seven witnesses presented arguments for and against H.R. 51. The opening statements from members of the committee included two speakers for and two speakers against H.R. 51. The opening statements acknowledged the highly political nature of D.C. Statehood, as most D.C. residents vote with the Democratic party.

As the witnesses spoke, the main arguments for statehood focused on the disenfranchisement of D.C. residents and the 220 year injustice of taxation without representation. A statistic that multiple witnesses used in support of statehood is that D.C. pays more in federal income taxes than 22 states. Witnesses against statehood focused on the constitutionality of H.R. 51 and the potentially outsized power D.C. might have if granted statehood. Additionally, speakers for statehood emphasized the racist elements of arguments against statehood, reminding the committee that efforts to bring representation to D.C. diminished after its population became majority Black.

After the witnesses completed their statements, Representatives on the committee asked questions. Some topics that were addressed included retrocession, a proposed solution to D.C. representation that deviates from statehood, the Federal government’s financial contributions to D.C., and questions of D.C.’s ability to support itself and function as a state.

Effectiveness

This document is very accessible to a general audience. The witnesses use plain language and clear examples to present their arguments for or against statehood. The main area of confusion this document could cause is surrounding interruptions and audio malfunctions. The existence of both a recorded video and transcript increases the accessibility of the hearing as the audience can receive the information in multiple formats. The length of the hearing does limit its usefulness to casual viewers, but the portion of the hearing that includes opening and witness statements is a good overview of the arguments and only encompasses the first third of the complete hearing. This hearing is a good companion piece to H.R. 51 and S. 51, as it contextualizes these documents.