BOYLE STATEMENT ON DC STATEHOOD VOTE

WASHINGTON, DC - Today, Congressman Brendan F. Boyle (PA-02) released the following statement after passage of the DC Admissions Act, which would admit the Douglass Commonwealth (a new name for Washington DC referencing abolitionist Frederick Douglass) as the 51st state to the United States:

"Roughly 700,000 taxpayers currently live in Washington, DC, but not one of them has a vote in Congress, or equal protection under the law because the District of Columbia is not a state," said Congressman Boyle. "Supporting statehood for Washington, DC brings us one step closer to a fully representative democracy, and ultimately one step closer to the more perfect union our founding fathers envisioned in Philadelphia in 1776."

Washington, DC residents pay the highest federal taxes per capita. D.C. is home to nearly 30,000 veterans, and it has a larger budget than 12 states. Passed by the House this week, the Washington, DC Admissions Act admits the Douglass Commonwealth as the 51st state to the United States, complying with all Constitutional requirements. The bill now heads to the US Senate.
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