Washington, D.C.’s only representative in Congress condemned the newest appropriations bill from the House Appropriations Committee that was set to be reviewed in a subcommittee on Monday evening.

The fiscal 2026 bill for the Financial Services and General Government Subcommittee was released on Sunday, drawing criticism from lawmakers such as Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC), who pushed back against the “unreasonable” and “patronizing” legislation in a press release on Sunday.

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Norton claimed the bill includes an “outrageous” number of “anti-home rule riders,” provisions that some members of Congress try to add to spending bills to help them gain more control over district issues, according to Norton’s press release. Washington, D.C., has operated under Home Rule since 1973, allowing the district to be governed by local officials.

“In my long career representing D.C. residents in Congress, I have rarely seen a bill as unreasonable and patronizing to the more than 700,000 people who live in the nation’s capital as this one,” Norton said. “I will use every tool at my disposal to stop these riders from becoming law, and I commit to reminding my fellow lawmakers across the aisle that D.C. residents deserve the same consideration as their own constituents at every opportunity.”

Norton argued that the bill targets Washington, D.C.’s independence because of provisions dictating how the district can spend its local funds, affecting several district policies and laws. One provision of the bill Norton objected to is a 50% decrease in funding for the district’s Tuition Assistance Grant Program, which makes up the difference for Washington, D.C., residents between in-state and out-of-state tuition up to $10,000 at public universities.

Norton also objected to a provision prohibiting local funds from being used to enforce any COVID-19 mask or vaccine mandates. She claimed the bill prohibits Washington, D.C., from spending local funds on abortion services for low-income women, though there is an exception to this rule if “the life of the mother would be endangered if the fetus were carried to term or where the pregnancy is the result of an act of rape or incest.”

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The bill provides $23.3 billion in discretionary funds for fiscal 2026, a 7.9% decrease from the fiscal 2025 budget, according to the committee’s summary report, which says the bill’s revisions and cuts are part of President Donald Trump’s “America First” agenda to restore “fiscal discipline” and “common sense” in the federal government.

“The measure upholds the rights of American citizens, strengthens national security, and harnesses technology to make the federal government work smarter, faster, and more efficiently for the American people,” the committee said in its report.