This bill would create the 51st U.S. state

This bill would create a 51st state in the United States. The State of Washington, Douglass Commonwealth would be comprised of the residential areas of Washington, D.C. - the District of Columbia.

Background and Details

The Constitution allows an area to be designated as the "seat of the government", to house operations required to run the federal government. It can be a maximum of 10 miles square.

That area is the District of Columbia. It is not a state like the other 50 states in the United States. It consists of the buildings and monuments that make up the federal government, as well as residential areas housing more than 600,000 people.

These residents have one non-voting member of the House of Representatives and no representation in the Senate. Any laws passed by its City Council or by a vote of its residents can be overturned by Congress.

This bill would separate the federal and residential areas of Washington, D.C. The federal area would remain as the District of Columbia. The residential areas would become the 51st U.S. state.

This state would be subject to the same laws as every other state. Its residents would be represented by one member of the House of Representatives and two Senators.

Other Congressional attempts for District of Columbia statehood

There have been several previous attempts to pass a bill that would create the the 51st state. Previous bills would have the state named New Columbia. None of them made it far enough to be voted on by the full House of Representatives or Senate.

Disposition

This bill expired when the 115th Congress ended in Jan. 2019.