EXCLUSIVE: Sen. Mike Lee, Rep. Andy Ogles Introduce Legislation To Repeal DC Home Rule

Republican Utah Sen. Mike Lee and Republican Tennessee Rep. Andy Ogles will introduce legislation Thursday to overturn D.C. home rule in the nation’s capital during the next Congress, giving control of the city back to Congress.

The Daily Caller first obtained a copy of the legislation is titled the Bringing Oversight to Washington and Safety to Every Resident (BOWSER) Act, after Democratic Washington, D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser. The bill would repeal the District of Columbia Home Rule Act one year after passage. Congress can exercise authority over D.C. local affairs, according to the District Clause of the Constitution (Article 1, Section 8, Clause 17), and reviews all D.C. legislation before it can become law. Congress can change or even overturn D.C. legislation and also impose new laws on the district.

“The corruption, crime, and incompetence of the DC government has been an embarrassment to our nation’s capital for decades. It is long past time that Congress restored the honor and integrity of George Washington to the beautiful city which bears his name,” Lee told the Caller before introducing the bill in the Senate. (RELATED: EXCLUSIVE: House, Senate GOP To Start ‘DC Home Rule’ Vote To Block District’s New Crime Law)

READ THE LEGISLATION HERE: 

(DAILY CALLER OBTAINED) — … by Henry Rodgers

“The radically progressive regime of D.C. Mayor Bowser has left our nation’s Capital in crime-ridden shambles. Washington is now known for its homicides, rapes, drug overdoses, violence, theft, and homelessness. Bowser and her corrupt Washington City Council are incapable of managing the city. As such, it seems appropriate for Congress to reclaim its Constitutional authority and restore the nation’s Capital. The epicenter of not only the United States Federal Government but also the world geopolitics cannot continue to be a cesspool of Democrats’ failed policies,” Ogles told the Caller before introducing the bill in the House.

“That’s why I’ve introduced the Bringing Oversight to Washington and Safety to Every Resident (BOWSER) Act, which would repeal the D.C. Home Rule Act. I am grateful to Senator Lee for his willingness to lead this critical legislation in the Senate,” he added.

This is something other Republicans have been passionate about. Georgia Rep. Andrew Clyde and Tennessee Sen. Bill Hagerty introduced a joint resolution of disapproval in 2023 to block the Washington, D.C., Council’s Revised Criminal Code Act of 2022, which would lower penalties for a number of violent criminal offenses, citing home rule. The Caller first broke the news on the legislation at the time. (RELATED: EXCLUSIVE: GOP Rep. Andrew Clyde Plans To Give Control Of DC Back To Congress, Wants To Pave Over BLM Plaza)

Clyde is also calling for Black Lives Matter (BLM) Plaza in Washington, D.C., to be paved over and will be introducing legislation on that soon, the Caller exclusively reported.