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H.R. 5856

U.S. House•In House Committee

Summary

H.R. 5856, the District of Columbia Government Title Equality Act, was introduced in the House on Oct 28, 2025 by Rep. Eleanor Norton (D). It was referred to Oversight And Government Reform, and last saw action on Oct 28, 2025: Referred to the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform.

Record

Text

H.R. 5856 has no co-sponsors and has not gone to a roll call.

hb5856/introduced-in-house.txt
119 HR 5856 IH: District of Columbia Government Title Equality Act
 U.S. House of Representatives
 2025-10-28
 text/xml
 EN
 Pursuant to Title 17 Section 105 of the United States Code, this file is not subject to copyright protection and is in the public domain.
 I  119th CONGRESS  1st Session  H. R. 5856  IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES   October 28, 2025   Ms. Norton  introduced the following bill; which was referred to the  Committee on Oversight and Government Reform    A BILL
To amend the District of Columbia Home Rule Act to redesignate the Office of the Mayor of the District of Columbia as the Office of the Governor of the District of Columbia and to redesignate the Council of the District of Columbia as the Legislative Assembly of the District of Columbia, and for other purposes.
1.
Short title
This Act may be cited as the   District of Columbia Government Title Equality Act  .
2.
Redesignation of Office of Mayor of District of Columbia as Office of Governor of District of Columbia
(a)
Redesignation
Section 421(a) of the District of Columbia Home Rule Act (sec. 1–204.21(a), D.C. Official Code) is amended to read as follows:
(a)
There is established the Office of the Governor of the District of Columbia, and the Governor shall be elected by the registered qualified electors of the District.
  .
(b)
Treatment of current Mayor
For purposes of section 421(a) of the District of Columbia Home Rule Act, as amended by subsection (a), the individual holding the Office of Mayor of the District of Columbia as of the date of the enactment of this Act shall be deemed to have been elected to the Office of Governor of the District of Columbia by the registered qualified electors of the District.
(c)
References in law
Any reference to the Office of the Mayor of the District of Columbia in any law, rule, or regulation of the United States or the District of Columbia shall be deemed to refer to the Office of the Governor of the District of Columbia, and any reference to the Mayor of the District of Columbia in any law, rule, or regulation of the United States or the District of Columbia shall be deemed to refer to the Governor of the District of Columbia.
3.
Redesignation of Council of District of Columbia as Legislative Assembly of District of Columbia
(a)
Redesignation
Section 401(a) of the District of Columbia Home Rule Act (sec. 1–204.01(a), D.C. Official Code) is amended to read as follows:
(a)
There is established a Legislative Assembly of the District of Columbia, consisting of Representatives who shall be elected by the registered qualified electors of the District.
  .
(b)
Treatment of current Members
For purposes of section 401(a) of the District of Columbia Home Rule Act, as amended by subsection (a), any individual holding the Office of Member of the Council of the District of Columbia as of the date of the enactment of this Act shall be deemed to have been elected to the Office of Representative of the Legislative Assembly of the District of Columbia by the registered qualified electors of the District.
(c)
References in law
Any reference to the Council of the District of Columbia in any law, rule, or regulation of the United States or the District of Columbia shall be deemed to refer to the Legislative Assembly of the District of Columbia, and any reference to a Member of the Council of the District of Columbia in any law, rule, or regulation of the United States or the District of Columbia shall be deemed to refer to a Representative of the Legislative Assembly of the District of Columbia.
4.
Redesignation of Chair of Council of District of Columbia as Speaker of Legislative Assembly of District of Columbia
(a)
Redesignation
Section 411(a) of the District of Columbia Home Rule Act (sec. 1–204.11(a) D.C. Official Code) is amended to read as follows:
(a)
The Speaker of the Legislative Assembly of the District of Columbia shall be the presiding officer of the Legislative Assembly.
  .
(b)
Treatment of current chair
For purposes of section 411(a) of the District of Columbia Home Rule Act, as amended by subsection (a), the individual holding the Office of Chair of the Council of the District of Columbia as of the date of the enactment of this Act shall be deemed to have been elected to the Office of Speaker of the Legislative Assembly of the District of Columbia by the registered qualified electors of the District.
(c)
References in law
Any reference to the Office of the Chair of the Council of the District of Columbia in any law, rule, or regulation of the United States or the District of Columbia shall be deemed to refer to the Office of the Speaker of the Legislative Assembly of the District of Columbia, and any reference to the Chair of the Council of the District of Columbia in any law, rule, or regulation of the United States or the District of Columbia shall be deemed to refer to the Speaker of the Legislative Assembly of the District of Columbia.

Tracker

The tracker indicates the progress of this legislation as it moves through the legislative process.

  1. Introduced2025-10-28
  2. Passed House
  3. Passed Senate
  4. Conference
  5. To President
  6. Became Law

CRS Summary

The summaries are the Congressional Research Service’s, one per stage. Read them in full.

Introduced in House Oct 28, 2025

hb5856/introduced-in-house.md

Shown Here:
Introduced in House (10/28/2025)

District of Columbia Government Title Equality Act

This bill amends the District of Columbia (DC) Home Rule Act to change the titles of DC elected officials and offices so that the titles correspond to terms used by state governments. Under the bill, the Office of the Mayor becomes the Office of the Governor, the Council becomes the Legislative Assembly, and the Chairman of the Council becomes the Speaker of the Legislative Assembly.

Sponsors

Rep. Eleanor Norton (D) sponsors H.R. 5856 alone.

Eleanor Norton

Rep. · D–DC · Sponsor

Committees

H.R. 5856 went before 1 committee: Oversight and Government Reform.

Oversight and Government Reform
Oversight and Government Reform
Referred To · Oct 28, 2025 · 696 Bills

Actions

H.R. 5856 has taken 3 actions since Oct 28, 2025.

ChamberAction
Oct 28, 2025
House
Introduced in House
Oct 28, 2025
House
Sponsor introductory remarks on measure. (CR E1009)
Oct 28, 2025
House
Referred to the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform.Oversight and Government Reform Committee

Votes

H.R. 5856 has not gone to a roll call.

Titles

H.R. 5856 goes by 3 titles, 1 of them short titles.

  • District of Columbia Government Title Equality Act — Display Title
  • District of Columbia Government Title Equality Act — Short Title(s) as Introduced
  • To amend the District of Columbia Home Rule Act to redesignate the Office of the Mayor of the District of Columbia as the Office of the Governor of the District of Columbia and to redesignate the Council of the District of Columbia as the Legislative Assembly of the District of Columbia, and for other purposes. — Official Title as Introduced

Lobbying

1 client hired 1 firm and 1 registered lobbyist who named H.R. 5856 in 1 quarterly filing, 2025. Reported under the Lobbying Disclosure Act; a filing’s income covers everything its registrant worked that quarter, so the amounts below are the filings’, not this bill’s.

Filed under Agriculture, Budget/Appropriations, Education, Environment/Superfund, Family issues/Abortion/Adoption, Firearms/Guns/Ammunition, Foreign Relations, Government Issues.

Clients

Who paid to be heard, by how many filings named the bill.

ClientBusinessStateFirmsFilingsReported
CONFERENCE OF PROVINCIALS OF NORTH AMERICA—Missouri11$20K

Firms

Registrants who filed on the bill, by filings.

RegistrantClientsFilingsReported
NATIONAL ADVOCACY CENTER OF THE SISTERS OF THE GOOD SHEPHERD11$20K

Lobbyists

Named on the filings that cite the bill.

LobbyistFirmsClientsFilings
FRANCES ESKIN-ROYER111

Filings

The documents themselves, on the Senate’s Lobbying Disclosure site, largest reported first.

ClientRegistrantPeriodReportedDocument
CONFERENCE OF PROVINCIALS OF NORTH AMERICANATIONAL ADVOCACY CENTER OF THE SISTERS OF THE GOOD SHEPHERD2025 fourth_quarter$20K4th Quarter - Report

Classification

The Congressional Research Service files H.R. 5856 under Government Operations and Politics, one of its 31 policy areas.

CRS Subjects

CRS assigns every bill one policy area from its 31; H.R. 5856’s is Government Operations and Politics.

hr5856/policy-areas.txt
Government Operations and PoliticsAgriculture and FoodAnimalsArmed Forces and National SecurityArts, Culture, ReligionCivil Rights and Liberties, Minority IssuesCommerceCongressCrime and Law EnforcementEconomics and Public FinanceEducationEmergency ManagementEnergyEnvironmental ProtectionFamiliesFinance and Financial SectorForeign Trade and International FinanceHealthHousing and Community DevelopmentImmigrationInternational AffairsLabor and EmploymentLawNative AmericansPublic Lands and Natural ResourcesScience, Technology, CommunicationsSocial WelfareSports and RecreationTaxationTransportation and Public WorksWater Resources Development

Constitutional authority

The clause the sponsor cites as Congress’s power to enact H.R. 5856, as entered in the Congressional Record.

[Congressional Record Volume 171, Number 179 (Tuesday, October 28, 2025)][House]From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]By Ms. NORTON:H.R. 5856.Congress has the power to enact this legislation pursuantto the following:clause 17 of section 8 of article I of the Constitution[Page H4560]

Source: congress.gov · legiscan.com