Steve Burns
WMAL.com
WASHINGTON – (WMAL) The first of two public hearings is scheduled for today on what could become the constitution of New Columbia should what is now known as the District of Columbia become a state.
“People who are expecting a surprise won’t find one,” DC Council Chairman Phil Mendelson tells WMAL. “The constitution as drafted is largely the same as the current structure of government.”
There may be some debates in the fine print, Mendelson says, regarding things like the exact size of the legislature and the independence of the Chief Financial Officer and the Auditor, but everyone is behind the overarching idea.
The Statehood Commission worked on drafting the Constitution through numerous outreach meetings earlier this year. They also eventually settled on what may the most controversial part of the process – the name New Columbia.
“I get it that there’s some folks that don’t like the name, but I think that it’s not as important” as the fundamental idea of equal representation through statehood, Mendelson says.
DC residents will vote on a referendum in November to become a state, and Mendelson says the Council plans to approve the Constitution prior to Election Day. However, some statehood advocates have criticized the process as rushed, and say there won’t be adequate time to vet the Constitution prior to the referendum vote.
“I get it that some people have said there hasn’t been enough opportunity,” Mendelson says. “That’s what we’re providing” through the public hearings.
“These are not new issues. People have been talking about statehood and what the state of New Columbia would look like for many, many years.”
DC officials plan to bring the referendum result along with the constitution to Capitol Hill early next year in anticipation of an admittance vote.
Copyright 2016 by WMAL.com. All Rights Reserved. (PHOTO: DC Statehood Now/Michelle Kinsey Burns)
