Senate votes to overturn DC police reform bill, reigniting tensions over home rule
Cami Mondeaux
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The Senate approved a resolution to overturn a slew of local police reforms in Washington, D.C., escalating tensions between Congress and city lawmakers over the district’s limited legislative autonomy.
The Senate voted in favor of overriding the local laws on Tuesday with a 56-43 vote, with eight senators who caucus with the Democrats joining all Republicans in backing the measure. The passage of the disapproval resolution marks only the second time in 30 years that Congress has repealed a local law passed by the D.C. Council.
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The vote comes after Sen. J.D. Vance (R-OH) revived the bill on Tuesday morning by filing a discharge petition that allowed the Senate to place the resolution on the floor for immediate consideration. Through that maneuver, Republicans only needed a simple majority in order to pass the bill — which they secured after senators such as Democrats Joe Manchin (D-WV) and Jon Tester (D-MT) as well as Kyrsten Sinema (I-AZ) joined Republicans in backing the measure.
The resolution seeks to repeal laws passed by the D.C. Council in December to reform the Metropolitan Police Department and the district’s justice system in the aftermath of George Floyd’s death at the hands of law enforcement in 2020. Several of those reforms focused on prohibiting the use of neck restraints, increasing access to body camera footage, and revising officer discipline procedures.
The House passed the disapproval resolution in late April, sending the legislation to the Senate for a vote where it was largely stalled due to a lack of support among the Democratic majority. However, Vance pushed to advance the measure on Tuesday, putting Democrats in a bind as they were once again faced with the choice to defend the district’s independence or to crack down on high crime rates.
“Congress must exert our constitutional authority to keep our nation’s capital safe,” Vance said on Tuesday. “It’s a disgrace that the capital of the most powerful nation on Earth has become so dangerous, but this sad reality is exactly what we should expect when far-left activists are calling the shots. For the good of every American who lives in or visits this town, I urge my colleagues to support my disapproval motion.”
Some district lawmakers have brushed off Vance’s efforts, arguing it would have no legal effect under the D.C. Home Rule Act, a 1973 law that gives the district the power to operate as an independent local government and have control over its own legislative affairs. The only caveat is that all laws are subject to congressional approval before being enacted, giving members of Congress outsize influence over the 68-square-mile jurisdiction.
Under the Home Rule Act, all district laws must undergo a 60-day review period during which Congress could block legislation from taking effect. That 60-day deadline passed on May 11, meaning the Comprehensive Policing and Justice Reform Amendment Act is now district law — prompting local lawmakers to question whether it can be undone by Vance’s bill.
“Congress established the deadlines for voting on disapproval resolutions, and voting to disapprove of legislation after the deadline is pointless and has no legal effect,” said Washington Attorney General Brian Schwalb in a statement. “The effort by Senate Republicans to advance a disapproval resolution now, after the 60-day review period has expired, has no legal consequence for the validity of the law, and is nothing more than empty political grandstanding.”
However, the Senate parliamentarian pushed back on that interpretation, arguing the 60-day threshold does not block the Senate from discharging the resolution out of committee.
Vance also pointed to the Enclave Clause of the Constitution that gives Congress complete authority over the district, which the Ohio Republican says can be used to undo the police bill.
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“D.C. officials are in constitutional fantasyland,” a spokesperson for Vance told the Washington Examiner. “We are confident that Congress has the authority to overturn this highly problematic law.”
Even with its passage in the Senate, the bill is unlikely to become law after President Joe Biden said in March he would veto such a measure should it reach his desk.