United States 119th Congress Status: In Committee 1 D cosponsors

HR 5856 — District of Columbia Government Title Equality Act

Last action — Referred to the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform.

  1. ✓
    Introduced
  2. 2
    In Committee
  3. 3
    Passed House
  4. 4
    Passed Senate
  5. 5
    To Executive
  6. 6
    Enacted

This bill is in committee in the House. Introduced October 28, 2025. It must pass committee before a floor vote.

Next likely step: a committee vote, then a floor vote in the House.

Odds of enactment

Low chance

Based on the sponsor, cosponsors, and committee posture, this bill has a low chance of becoming law.

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A statistical estimate from our own model of past outcomes — an insight, not a guarantee. Policymaking is volatile.

Prognosis

Stalled 16% · moderate confidence

  • In Committee

    Current position in the legislative process.

  • 1 sponsor

    1 primary, 0 co-sponsors signed on.

  • Single-party support

    Sponsorship is currently within one party (1 D).

Based on stage, sponsorship breadth, committee status, recorded votes, and cross-state momentum — a description of the observable signals, not a prediction.

Summary

District of Columbia Government Title Equality ActThis 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.

Bill Text

How this bill changes current law

12 changes Share ↗

AI-generated reading aid from the bill's amendatory text — verify against the official bill.

This bill redesignates the Office of the Mayor and Council of the District of Columbia to the Office of the Governor and the Legislative Assembly, respectively.

  • Section 421(a)

    There is established the Office of the Mayor of the District of Columbia, and the Mayor shall be elected by the registered qualified electors of the District. → 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.

    This change renames the Office of the Mayor to the Office of the Governor.

  • Section 401(a)

    There is established a Council of the District of Columbia, consisting of Members who shall be elected by the registered qualified electors of the District. → 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.

    This change renames the Council to the Legislative Assembly.

  • Section 411(a)

    The Chair of the Council of the District of Columbia shall be the presiding officer of the Council. → The Speaker of the Legislative Assembly of the District of Columbia shall be the presiding officer of the Legislative Assembly.

    This change renames the Chair of the Council to the Speaker of the Legislative Assembly.

  • Section 421(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.

    This ensures the current Mayor is automatically considered the Governor upon enactment.

  • Section 401(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.

    This ensures current Council members are automatically considered Representatives upon enactment.

  • Section 411(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.

    This ensures the current Chair is automatically considered the Speaker upon enactment.

  • 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.

    This adjusts all legal references to reflect the new title of Governor.

  • 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.

    This updates references to the Mayor in various laws to the new title of Governor.

  • 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.

    This adjusts all legal references to reflect the new title of Legislative Assembly.

  • 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.

    This updates references to Council Members in various laws to the new title of Representatives.

  • 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.

    This adjusts all legal references to reflect the new title of Speaker.

  • 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.

    This updates references to the Chair in various laws to the new title of Speaker.

Action History

  1. Introduced in House

  2. Sponsor introductory remarks on measure. (CR E1009)

  3. Introduced in House

  4. Referred to the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform.

Sponsors

Sponsorship breakdown

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1 sponsors · 0 co-sponsors · 546 not signed on

Sponsors (1)

Co-sponsors (0)

None.

Not signed on (546)

546 members have not signed on to this bill.

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"Not signed on" means a member has not sponsored or co-sponsored this bill — it does not imply opposition. Members flagged Voted No have a recorded No vote on this bill.

Whip count is in markup. Polling the chamber and every recorded vote this session. Only the first open is slow. It’s instant for you after this. Calling the roll · Tallying · Engrossing

Subjects

civil-rights elections
Cross-referencing the record. Reading this bill against every other bill in the corpus by meaning, not keywords. Only the first open is slow. It’s instant for you after this. Matching · Ranking · Engrossing

Frequently asked questions

What does HR 5856 do?
District of Columbia Government Title Equality ActThis 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.
Who sponsors HR 5856?
HR 5856 is sponsored by Norton, Eleanor Holmes (Democratic).
What is the current status of HR 5856?
This bill is in committee in the House. Introduced October 28, 2025. It must pass committee before a floor vote.
Where can I track HR 5856?
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Last checked for changes 3 months ago · updated continuously

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