Washington, DC – Today, in response to a court filing by Mayor Muriel Bowser stating that she was departing from her predecessor’s view on the legality of the DC Budget Autonomy Act, Attorney General Karl A. Racine underscored his position – shared by Chief Financial Officer Jeffrey DeWitt – that the Act is invalid under federal law and should not be enforced or implemented.

An appeal of U.S. District Judge Emmet Sullivan’s ruling in the case, brought by the DC Council against then-Mayor Vincent Gray and CFO DeWitt, is currently pending before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit.

“CFO DeWitt and I agree with Judge Sullivan and regretfully conclude that the Budget Autonomy Act is unlawful and cannot be enforced by the District,” Attorney General Racine said. “Judge Sullivan, in his 47-page ruling on the case, said that, although he was very sympathetic to the Budget Autonomy Act’s purpose, the Act was simply not legally sound. My independent review of the case confirmed that Judge Sullivan’s conclusion is correct under law, and the CFO and the Office of the Attorney General look forward to a timely final decision in the case.”