Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1927-12-22
Head of National Council of
State Legislatures to Tes-
tify at Hearing.
CONGRESS WILL HEAR
RESOLUTION OF GROUP
Proposed Amendment Would EN-
power Congress to Grant
Rights to District.


Legislatures, representing the govern
ing bodies Of 40 States. to approve
without further delay the pending
proposal for representation in the
House and Senate and in the electoral
college for the voteless people Of
Washington.
The executive committee Of the
council, which is empowered to for
mulate it's policies between sessions Of
the full organization. has adopted a
report. officially pledging active sup
port Of the proposal in cooperation
with the joint citizens committee on
national representation. This report
was made public today at the head.
quarters Of the council in this city.
The report was submitted unani.
mously by the councils special COM
mittee on the Government of the Dis
trict of Columbia, of which j. Ronald
Horsey of Baltimore, a member of the
Maryland Legislature, Is chairman.
1t is signed by Mr.. Horsey. William
Winthrup Of Wilmington. speaker in
the Delaware Legislature; Arthur A.
Sherman of Portsmouth, speaker in
the Rhode Island Legislature, and ].
member of the Virginia Legislature.
Kirby May Testify.
All four Of these men met recently
in Washington and conferred with
members Of the joint citizens com.
mittee. They returned to their homes
enthusiastically in favor of aiding the
people Of the District to obtain rights
which are enjoyed by American citi.
zens in all the States.
John H. Kirby of Houston, Tex.
president Of the National Council OF
State Legislatures, expects to be In
Washington in January. He will be
prepared to appear personally before
the judiciary committee OF the House
and Senate. at hearings soon to be ar
ranged, and join the citizens Of Wash.
ington in advocating the identical
resolutions for District representation
pending in both branches OF Congress.
Mr.. Kirby will select two other
members of the council to appear with
him at the hearings. They will prob
ably be Mr.. Horsey Of Maryland and
MFR. Topping OF Virginia, both OF whom
have taken a deep personal interest in
the uphill fight Of the citizens OF the
Capital City TO gain representation In
the National Government, which exer-
cises exclusive Jurisdiction over them.
The pending resolutions propose to
submit to the States for ratification an
amendment to the Federal Constitu-
ton. which would empower Congress.
In its discretion, to grant to the people
Of the District representation in both
branches Of Congress, the right to vote
for President and Vice President and
the right to sue and be sued in
the Federal courts. Representative
Leonidas G. Dyer Of Missouri Is
sponsor for the House resolution. The
Senate resolution has been introduced
by Senator Wesley L. Jones Of Wash.
ington.
The demand Of the citizens of Wash
ington for votes in the body which
makes their laws, fixes their taxes and
appropriates money for their needs, Is
in accord with the fundamental princi-
pies upon which the National Council
Of State Legislatures was founded, as
they were explained by Mr.. Kirby at
recent meeting of the council in this
city. Mr.. Kirby then spoke vigorously
against taxation without representa-
ton and In favor of representative
government as embodied in the Con.
stitrtion Of the United States.
Horsey's Report Cited.
The report of the special committee
on the District of Columbia was pre-
pared by Mr.. Horsey. who is lawyer,
and adopted by the executive commit
tee of the council without change. It
reads as follows:
your committee, having carefully
considered the proposal that Congress
be empowered, by the adoption Of an
amendment to the Constitution OF the
40 1,f m hn
of the District Of Columbia. the right
Of representation in Congress and the
right to vote for President and Vice
President of the United States. with
access to the Federal courts, recon-
mends that the National Council Of
State Legislatures give its hearty in
dorsement to the proposal. Your com.
mittee also recommends that the
president of the National Council Of
State Legislatures be authorized to
name a committee to appear. with
members of the joint citizens COM
mittee on national representation for
the District of Columbia, at hearings
before the proper committees OF Con-
gress for the purpose of urging prompt
APPROVAL of the proposed constitutional
amendment, as embodied in House
joint resolution Is and Senate joint
resolution s, and that the council other
wise aid in obtaining favorable action
Upon the amendment, both in Congress
and the several States.
1.-THE resolution now pending in Con.
gress. to which reference Is hereby
made, are identical in language.
Amendment Is Proposed.
"They propose an amendment of the
of the United States by
at the end of section 3, arti-
Gle 4, the following words:
1.-THE Congress shall have power to
admit to the status of citizens Of a
State the residents of the District con-
the seat of Government or
the United States. created by article
1, section 8, for the purpose OF repre-
in the Congress and among
the election Of President and Vice
and for the purpose OF
suing and being sued in the courts of
the United States under the provisions
Of article III, section 2.
when the Congress shall exercise
this power the residents Of such Dis
trict shall be entitled to elect one or
two Senator's. as determined by the
Congress, Representatives In the
House, according to their numbers as
by the decennial enumera'
ton, and presidential electors equal in
to their aggregate representa-
ton in the House and Senate.
1.-THE Congress shall provide by law
the qualification of voters and the
time and manner Of choosing the Sen.
lContinued on PAGE S. Column A