Comer and Garbarino Applaud Passage of Protecting Our Nation’s Capital Emergency Act

WASHINGTON—House Oversight and Government Reform Chairman James Comer (R-Ky.) and Rep. Andrew Garbarino (R-N.Y.) today praised the U.S. House of Representatives’ passage of the Protecting Our Nation’s Capital Emergency Act (H.R. 2096), which restores due process protections for Washington, D.C. police officers and is an important step in codifying President Trump’s “Make the District of Columbia Safe and Beautiful” executive order. 

“D.C. police officers deserve the right to fair representation, collective bargaining, and a clear disciplinary process just like other public servants. As recruitment and retention numbers in local police departments dwindle nationwide and crime in D.C. remains high, the passage of the Protecting Our Nation’s Capital Emergency Act is needed more than ever to protect the police officers who sacrifice their lives daily to keep our capital city safe. This bill gives Americans the transparency and accountability they deserve from local law enforcement, while also protecting officers’ rights from being trampled on by radical bureaucracy. The House Oversight Committee is proud to help get Rep. Garbarino’s bill passed in the House, and I urge my colleagues in the Senate to support this bill and get it over the finish line,” said Chairman Comer. 

 “The House’s passage of my bill, the Protecting Our Nation’s Capital Emergency Act, is a critical step toward restoring law and order in Washington, D.C. The Metropolitan Police Department is facing a public safety crisis brought on by reckless policies that have stripped officers of basic protections and left the force dangerously understaffed,” said Rep. Garbarino. “This legislation helps right that wrong by giving MPD the tools and support they need to recruit, retain, and protect. Congress has a duty to ensure our nation’s capital is safe, and today’s vote sends a clear message: we back the badge, and we refuse to let violent crime take over D.C.” 

Background: 

In 2023, with crime skyrocketing impacting District residents, businesses, the federal workforce, and Americans who visited their Nation’s Capital, the D.C. Council passed legislation that created recruitment and retention problems for police officers with the Comprehensive Policing and Justice Reform Amendment Act of 2022 (D.C. Act 24-781). In 2023, Congress attempted to block D.C. Act 24-781 from becoming law with H.J.Res. 42, but President Biden vetoed the bipartisan disapproval resolution, allowing D.C.’s anti-police reforms to remain in effect.  

The Protecting Our Nation’s Capital Emergency Act (H.R. 2096), amends the D.C. Government Comprehensive Merit Personnel Act of 1978 to restore two provisions removed by the Comprehensive Policing and Justice Reform Amendment Act of 2022 (D.C. Law 24-345): one that lets the police union bargain over officer disciplinary matters, and another that sets a timeline for disciplining officers accused of misconduct. 

The Protecting Our Nation’s Capital Emergency Act is endorsed by the National Fraternal Order of the Police.