The D.C. Council Committee on Education researched policies across the country that limit or ban early childhood suspensions as part of consideration of the Pre-K Student Discipline Amendment Act of 2015.
The Attendance Accountability Amendment Act of 2013 required the Office of the State Superintendent of Education (OSSE) to issue a report including findings and recommendations to aid each educational institution in eliminating out-of-suspension and expulsions, except for those students who pose a reasonable threat of death or serious bodily harm to themselves or other or violate the Expulsion of Students Who Bring Weapons Into Public Schools Act of 1996, effective April 9, 1997 (D.C. Law 11-174; D.C. Official Code § 38-231 et seq.). In June 2014, OSSE released the report "Reducing Out-of-School Suspensions and Expulsions in District of Columbia Public Schools and Public Charter Schools."
Washington, D.C. – Today, Councilmember David Grosso (I-At-Large) introduced the “Language Access for Education Amendment Act of 2015.” The bill will strengthen existing law by increasing the standards of language access for all education and government services for all of our non-English proficient residents.
By Aaron C. Davis January 30, 2015, Washington Post
Dozens of attorneys, advocates and shelter operators on Friday cast the District’s $124 million homeless operation as a system in disarray, failing to help the city’s most vulnerable and wasting money — and the administration of new Mayor Muriel E. Bowser (D) largely agreed.
Notice of request to reprogram $49,476,800 of Capital Funds Budget Authority and Allotment within the D.C. Public Schools. Filed by Mayor Bowser January 22, 2015.
Public and government witnesses will offer testimony on Chairman Grosso's bill to stop Pre-K suspensions and expulsion and collect data on school discipline.
For Immediate Release
January 20, 2015
Contact: Dionne Johnson Calhoun
(202) 724-8105
Grosso Introduces Bill to Expand Voting Rights in Local Elections to Permanent Resident Immigrants in D.C.
Washington, D.C. – Today, Councilmember David Grosso (I-At-Large) introduced the Local Resident Voting Rights Amendment Act of 2015, a bill to grant voting rights in local municipal elections to all non-citizens in D.C. with permanent residency immigration status.
The full text of Grosso's statement follows:
This morning along with Councilmembers Allen, Nadeau, Evans and Silverman, I introduced the Local Resident Voting Rights Amendment Act of 2015. This bill would grant voting rights in local municipal elections to D.C. residents who are not U.S. citizens but have permanent residency status.
“All politics is local” is a common phrase in the U.S. political system and what most District residents care about are the tangible things that affect their day-to-day lives like potholes, playgrounds, taxes, snow removal, trash collection, red light cameras and more. All of these issues are important to voters in D.C. Unfortunately, not all of our residents have a say in choosing the officials who make these decisions. In my opinion, that is unjust.
Since 1970, the District of Columbia has had a steady increase in the number of foreign-born residents. According to the U.S. Census Bureau (2012), approximately 53,975 residents in the District are foreign born, but not naturalized U.S. citizens. Over 90% of that population is 18 years of age or older. These are taxpayers who should have the opportunity to have their voices heard in local elections.
For most of American history, non-citizens were permitted to vote in 22 states and federal territories. It was not until the 1920s that, amidst anti-immigrant hysteria, lawmakers began to bar non-citizens from voting in local and statewide elections. Unfortunately, this hysteria continues across the United States, but it does not need to continue any longer in the District of Columbia.
Currently, there are seven jurisdictions where non-citizens can vote in local elections in the U.S., six of which are in neighboring Maryland. None of these cities or towns has experienced incidents of voting fraud with regard to non-citizens voting in federal elections. A similar bill was introduced in the Council in 2004 and unfortunately, due to the political climate at the time regarding immigration reform, it did not receive full consideration by this Council. Eleven years later, the time is now to reignite this conversation.
###
On Friday January 16, 2015, Councilmember Grosso joined The Kojo Show on WAMU 88.5 FM for its weekly Politics hour.
By Michael Alison Chandler, Washington Post, January 15, 2015 "D.C. Council member David Grosso (I- At large), the newly appointed chairman of the education committee, outlined a broad approach to education reform this week, involving every agency in the city to help prepare students to learn..."
Watch Councilmember Grosso's video recap of 2014 and his overview of what's ahead in 2015.
Today, Councilmember David Grosso (I-At Large) is excited to announce his priorities as the Chairperson of the Committee on Education for 2015.
Defiant D.C. Politicians Push Ahead With Pot Legalization
By Steven Nelson, U.S. News & World Report, January 8, 2015
Congress recently passed legislation intending to stop the District of Columbia from becoming an East Coast outpost of marijuana legalization, but district politicians are moving forward with efforts to open recreational pot stores anyhow.
Councilman David Grosso, an independent, quietly introduced legislation Tuesday to tax and regulate sales of marijuana like alcohol. Four Democratic colleagues on the 13-member D.C. Council are co-sponsoring the bill.
“I think we’re on the path to seeing this bill enacted,” Grosso tells U.S. News, noting that “by moving this bill forward, we’re directly confronting Congress.”
Grosso introduced a similar bill in 2013, and it passed two council committees last year. In November, district voters overwhelmingly endorsed legalization, with 70 percent approving Initiative 71, which would cast off all penalties for possession of up to 2 ounces of pot for adults 21 and older.
The initiative results have not yet been transmitted to Congress for a mandatory review period, but that’s likely to happen soon. Congress has the power to block district laws with resolutions of disapproval, but more often passes budget riders to dictate city policies.
That happened in December, when Congress passed and President Barack Obama signed into law a budget rider written by Rep. Andy Harris, R-Md., that bans the district from spending its own funds to legalize marijuana in the nation's capital.
Harris told U.S. News last year that district leaders can unilaterally abandon marijuana enforcement whenever they would like, but he intended with his rider to stop the actual law from changing and to prevent shops from opening.
Congress passed a similar budget rider after district voters passed a medical marijuana initiative in 1998, stalling the opening of dispensaries for more than a decade. Grosso says city officials didn't put up enough resistance then, and hopes for a fight this time.
Some politicians say Initiative 71, which also allows home cultivation of six plants, was already enacted when voters passed it, and thus will take effect regardless of congressional input.
The initiative was not able to establish a regulated marketplace for marijuana sales – as successful ballot measures in Alaska, Colorado, Oregon and Washington did – leaving such regulation to the D.C. Council.
“This is a golden opportunity to do direct civil disobedience,” Grosso says of his bill, “because if Congress is saying, ‘No, you can’t do it,’ and we do it, it challenges them to do what they think they have to do, unlike going out in the street and blocking traffic, where it’s an indirect message to the cause you’re trying to move forward.”
Mayor Muriel Bowser, a Democrat, and most of the council appear to support moving forward with legalization. The council passed one of the nation’s most lenient decriminalization laws last year, lowering penalties for possession of 1 ounce to a $25 fine, with an eye toward going even further.
A spokeswoman for Bowser did not respond to a request for comment on Grosso's bill. But during a Sunday appearance on "Meet the Press," the mayor said, "We want to respect the will of the D.C. voters," and, "We have to have regulations in place."
Though Harris’ budget rider prohibits the district from spending funds to create a regulated pot marketplace, a successful bill like Grosso’s likely would still need to be killed with a congressional resolution of disapproval.
Grosso believes if the regulation bill is sent to Congress, it would technically survive review. But it's unclear what would happen then, given the Harris budget rider.
The councilman says districts residents can help.
"But for Congress we would have marijuana stores opening by the end of the year," he says. "Some person from middle-of-nowhere Maryland can come and tell us what's best for us, it's ridiculous. … Congress will give us our rights when 10,000 people a week show up on their doorstep and scream at them, but people aren't doing that yet."
A bill to prohibit the suspension or expulsion of a student of pre-kindergarten age from any publicly funded pre-kindergarten program; and to establish annual reporting requirements for each local education agency on suspensions and expulsions data.
Please join Councilmember Grosso for an Open House for the Committee on Education on Wednesday, January 14, 2015 from 4pm–6pm in Room 116 of the John A. Wilson Building
At the Council of the District of Columbia organizational meeting for Council Period 21, members voted to appoint Councilmember David Grosso (I-At Large) as the chair of the Committee on Education.
For Immediate Release
December 9, 2014
Contact: Dionne Johnson Calhoun
(202) 724-8105
Grosso to Congress: Don't Blunt D.C.'s Election
WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Today, Councilmember David Grosso (I-At Large) issued the following statement on a potential rider on Initiative 71 that House Republicans are negotiating in the omnibus spending bill to prevent a federal government shutdown:
"It is disheartening and frustrating to learn that once again the District of Columbia is being used as a political pawn by the Congress. On Election Day, residents voted overwhelmingly in favor of Initiative 71, which would legalize the limited possession and cultivation of marijuana by adults who are 21 or older. To undermine the vote of the people--taxpayers--does not foster or promote the "limited government" stance House Republicans claim they stand for; it's uninformed paternalistic meddling.
The members of Congress and the residents of the 50 states they represent do not have to deal with the significant and growing collateral consequences of the marijuana arrests and convictions in the District as a result of the failed "War on Drugs". The people have spoken and they have voted. We are tired of a criminal justice system that has too often focused on vengeance and punishment, and does not allow for social and economic reintegration of returning citizens into our communities so that they do not turn to crime again. Initiative 71 was our start for a common sense approach to these issues. It's about social justice.
The District's medical marijuana program was delayed by Congress for over a decade and we will not stand by and allow this to happen again with Initiative 71. I urge the residents of this city to take a stand along with the Council in our continued fight for legislative and budget autonomy and call members of the House and Senate Appropriations Committee to ask them to pass a clean CR and leave the District of Columbia out of their politics."
TAKE ACTION: Call and tweet the chairs and ranking members of the Senate and House Appropriations Committees to express your frustration with this proposal.
Senate Appropriation Committee:
Chair: Senator Barbara Mikulski, D-MD
(202) 224-4654
Ranking member: Senator Richard Shelby, R-AL
(202) 224-5744
House Appropriations Committee:
Chair: Rep. Hal Rogers, R-KY
(202) 225-4601
Ranking Member: Rep. Nita Lowey, D-NY
(202) 225-6506
Now that hypothermia season is in full swing, Councilmember Grosso sent this letter to the D.C. Department of Human Services for an update on the plans and budgeting for supporting the homeless this winter. Keeping an eye on agency expenditures and performance--such as the $8.75 million the Council allocated for homeless services in fiscal year 2015--is critical to the Council's oversight of the D.C. government.
I read this poem last night to kick off the DC Scores poetry slam.
Democracy
by Langston Hughes
Democracy will not come
Today, this year
Nor ever
Through compromise and fear.
I have as much right
As the other fellow has
To stand
On my two feet
And own the land.
I tire so of hearing people say,
Let things take their course.
Tomorrow is another day.
I do not need my freedom when I'm dead.
I cannot live on tomorrow's bread.
Freedom
Is a strong seed
Planted
In a great need.
I live here, too.
I want freedom
Just as you.
The D.C. Council and Mayor Gray invite D.C. residents to visit the Wilson Building to sign a condolence book for former Mayor and Councilmember Marion Barry. The books will be available on the first floor of the John A. Wilson Building (1350 Pennsylvania Ave NW) on the following days:
Tuesday, November 25th, 9:00 am – 5:30 pm
Wednesday, November 26th, 9:00 am – 5:30 pm
Friday, November 28th, 9:00 am – 5:30 pm
Washington, DC -- Today, Councilmember David Grosso (I-At Large) issued the following statement on the results of the grand jury deliberation in Ferguson, MO:
I am saddened and deeply disappointed by the grand jury's decision not to indict Officer Darren Wilson for the murder of Michael Brown. The events in Ferguson have provoked national conversations about race, police-community relations, the militarization of law enforcement, and more.
Here in the District we have held hearings and town hall meetings to assess local police tactics and implemented a body camera pilot program, yet there is still more work to be done. I am committed to working with law enforcement, advocates and residents to discuss meaningful policy solutions to move our city forward on these critical issues.
The disappointing outcome of this case will certainly evoke a passionate response and it is my hope that any protests or demonstrations will be peaceful and that law enforcement in the District will respect the rights of residents to assemble. Our words must now become our actions and I welcome any and all residents to schedule time to meet with my office to discuss ways to bridge the gap between police officers and those they are sworn to protect and serve.
###