House subcommittee hears testimony on bill to codify ‘DC Safe and Beautiful’ executive order
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Summary
Lawmakers and witnesses debated HR 5103, which would codify Executive Order 14252 to create a District of Columbia Safe and Beautiful Commission, expand interagency coordination and authorize DOI-led restoration and encampment removal on federal lands in D.C.; witnesses and members emphasized public-safety, staffing shortfalls, and concerns about local control.
House and subcommittee members on Nov. 30 heard hours of testimony on HR 5103, the District of Columbia Safe and Beautiful Act, a bill that would codify Executive Order 14252 and create a statutory framework for coordinating restoration, graffiti removal, and enhanced law-enforcement activity on federally managed lands in the nation’s capital.
Sponsor Representative Andy Maguire introduced the bill as a way to protect national monuments, restore vandalized memorials and strengthen interagency cooperation. DOI witness Robert D. McClain testified the department supports HR 5103 and said the legislation aligns with the executive order and Secretary’s Order 3428, which task DOI bureaus — primarily the National Park Service and U.S. Park Police — with maintenance and public-safety duties on roughly 1,000 acres of culturally significant parklands.
Supporters including Gregory Pemberton, president of DC Police Union Lodge 2, and Kenneth Spencer of the U.S. Park Police Fraternal Order of Police said HR 5103 would help address staffing shortfalls, improve response times and formalize joint operations between federal and local agencies. Pemberton cited increases in incidents on or adjacent to federal lands and argued that a federal commission would facilitate planning and resource sharing. Spencer said the Park Police remain hundreds of officers short of minimum staffing levels and urged parallel reforms to pay and retirement (H.R. 1260) to retain personnel needed to implement HR 5103’s goals.
Opponents and the ranking Democrat on the subcommittee, Representative Joe Neguse, said the bill risks undermining local home rule and could be used to expand federal authority over District policing and historical interpretation. Neguse raised examples he described as efforts to remove or sanitize references to marginalized groups from park materials and said federal codification of the executive order could further politicize historical narratives in national parks. Witnesses and members also debated the limits of DOI authority and whether DOI personnel should engage in immigration enforcement, with McClain repeatedly stating immigration enforcement lies with the Department of Homeland Security and DOI officers take action based on offenses, not immigration status.
Committee members spent significant time pressing DOI officials on operational details: how permits for demonstrations are framed and revoked when permit conditions are violated, how vandalized monuments are restored given sensitive materials and conservation protocols, and how encampment removals are coordinated with local social service providers to preserve humane treatment.
The hearing produced no vote. The record will remain open for 10 business days for members to submit additional questions and written materials. The next procedural step for HR 5103 was not taken at the hearing; committee members signaled differing views about federal coordination versus local authority, and several lawmakers said staffing and pay reforms for the U.S. Park Police would be necessary to achieve the bill’s objectives.