Today, as the Senate Appropriations Committee prepares to mark up the spending bill for Washington, DC, People For the American Way urges lawmakers to reject any attempt to force unwanted policy riders onto DC residents. The House version, currently awaiting a floor vote, includes a number of unwanted riders for anti-choice and school voucher policies.

Michael Keegan, president of People For the American Way, issued the following statement:

“We strongly encourage the Senate Appropriations Committee to approve a clean DC appropriations bill free of divisive and unwelcome policy riders. DC residents and their elected officials should be the ones who determine what is best for their city, without the meddling of a Congress in which they have no vote. For a party that claims to be focused on getting the federal government out of people’s lives, many Republicans have been astoundingly eager to override DC’s home rule on issues including school funding, marriage equality and access to abortion. We hope that in marking up this bill, the Committee can unite behind

an agenda that focuses on the well-being of the people of DC.”

###