Congress Moves to Lock D.C. Out of Congestion Pricing — Just as Its Next Mayor Wants In

Why This Matters to D.C. Residents Right Now

Washington, D.C., does not have congestion pricing. There is no active bill before the D.C. Council to create it. And yet, in late May, Congress moved to make sure the District can never have it — permanently rewriting the city's Home Rule Charter to strip local leaders of a policy option they haven't even formally proposed yet. That legislative maneuver now sits on a collision course with the results of June's mayoral primary: Janeese Lewis George, the Ward 4 councilmember who won the Democratic nomination for mayor and is widely expected to win in November, has made congestion pricing one of her most explicit and enthusiastic policy commitments. The stakes for D.C. residents — their commutes, their transit system, their city's fiscal future, and their right to govern themselves — couldn't be higher.

What the DC ROADS Act Would Do

A new battle over D.C. Home Rule unfolded on Capitol Hill after House Republicans advanced legislation that would permanently block the District from ever implementing a congestion pricing system. The bill, introduced by Rep. Scott Perry (R-PA), would amend the Home Rule Act to prohibit the District from imposing any fee on drivers to enter or pass through the city. It is formally titled the DC ROADS Act (a backronym standing for "Reducing Obstacles And Decreasing Spending").

The DC ROADS Act was the direct product of a March 2026 D.C. Department of Transportation study recommending a $10 fee on vehicles entering downtown D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser opposed the study's findings, calling it "the wrong policy at the wrong time." But with mayoral candidates signaling openness to congestion pricing, Republicans moved to foreclose the option entirely.

The DC ROADS Act vote, which passed 22 to 18, was the narrowest margin of the markup, underscoring just how partisan the fight was. The Trump administration's campaign against congestion pricing nationally put the committee squarely in alignment with the White House on that fight, while Democrats fired back that Congress was legislating against a problem that doesn't exist.

The Stop DC CAMERA Act and DC ROAD Act passed the House Oversight Committee and are pending a potential vote in the full House. The House is currently in a district work period, with the next votes expected Monday, August 31. That means a floor vote — and a consequential one for D.C. — could arrive within weeks.

Home Rule at the Heart of the Fight

The legislation has drawn fierce condemnation from D.C.'s congressional representative. Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton said: "Today's markup is the fifth time this Congress that Republicans have wasted this Committee's time on paternalistic, anti-home rule bills designed to interfere with D.C. traffic policies, a petty fixation Rep. Perry spends much of his time on, to the detriment of his constituents in Pennsylvania."

DC Shadow Senator Ankit Jain, who was present during the Oversight Committee meeting, said Congress's focus shouldn't be on D.C. laws amid larger issues: "The number one thought I had is, why is the United States Congress spending its scarce time debating a change to a hypothetical local law that does not actually exist."

Critics also note the pattern. Perry has previously sought to dismantle D.C.'s automated traffic enforcement program and eliminate requirements for drivers to stop before turning right on red. Perry has repeatedly used standalone bills, amendments, and riders to block or repeal D.C.'s traffic safety laws, yet not a single one has been enacted. Whether the DC ROADS Act breaks that pattern — and becomes law — is now the central question for D.C. autonomy advocates.

On the Other Side: Republican and Suburban Arguments

Supporters of the ban frame it in terms of commuter protection. Republican supporters of the bill argue that congestion pricing could place an added financial burden on commuters traveling into Washington from Maryland and Virginia. Critics, however, argue that congestion pricing disproportionately affects working-class drivers and commuters who may have limited transportation alternatives.

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy has separately launched a "Freedom to Drive" initiative, and the administration fought New York City's congestion pricing program in federal court earlier this year, providing the ideological backdrop to Perry's bill and signaling that the White House would likely sign the DC ROADS Act if it reached the president's desk.

The Mayor-in-Waiting Has a Very Different Plan

The DC ROADS Act is, in a very real sense, aimed at D.C.'s next mayor. Janeese Lewis George, who pledged to aggressively stand up to federal intervention into Washington, D.C.'s affairs, won Tuesday's Democratic primary for mayor, setting up a potential showdown with the Trump administration over its moves to challenge the city's limited autonomy.

In an overwhelmingly Democratic city, Lewis George is likely to take the top spot in November's general election, replacing moderate Muriel Bowser, who decided not to run again after three terms. Lewis George of Ward 4 led by double digits during the latest vote update, with 53% of the vote versus McDuffie's 37%.

On congestion pricing specifically, Lewis George has been unusually direct. Lewis George won the endorsement of urbanist organization Greater Greater Washington with, in part, "an unprompted ode to road pricing," with the candidate stating: "I want to use this opportunity to talk about why I champion congestion pricing and how it can improve our lives… Congestion pricing will improve health outcomes, transportation outcomes, and of course, generate revenue." (Analysis: That quote is from Lewis George's own campaign questionnaire responses, as published by Greater Greater Washington.)

She supports working families and labor rights, and she champions congestion pricing and transit improvements as ways to address both affordability and climate concerns. Her platform also pledges to create free transit for those who need it, including free buses for D.C. residents enrolled in the SNAP food assistance program.

After Lewis George said she would release the DDOT Congestion Pricing study within 48 hours of being sworn in, Mayor Bowser released the study herself — a good first step, in Lewis George's view. (Attributed: from Lewis George's own campaign platform, janeesefordc.com.) That sequence reveals the dynamic already at play: even before Election Day, Lewis George's stated intentions are already shaping policy decisions.

What the Congestion Pricing Debate Means for WMATA and the City Budget

The stakes go well beyond traffic. Supporters of road pricing note that tolls collected from Maryland and Virginia commuters could be returned to those states to help fund their contributions to the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority budget. For a transit system perpetually under fiscal stress — and a city that has spent years trying to stabilize Metro funding — the permanent foreclosure of a potential revenue stream is not a trivial matter.

The approach could also address growing concerns about traffic flow as autonomous vehicles enter the transportation mix, which analysts warn may worsen congestion without pricing mechanisms in place. (Analysis: The long-term fiscal and transit implications are thus far larger than the immediate political fight suggests.)

A Broader Pattern of Federal Overreach

The DC ROADS Act arrives in the context of a sustained effort by Congress, aligned with the Trump administration, to assert greater control over D.C. governance. Separately, House Republicans advanced a bill that would require all tax changes and fees in D.C. to be subject to a 60-day approval by Congress, proposed by committee chairman Rep. James Comer (R-KY), approved with a 23-18 vote. Comer insisted he was trying to stop the D.C. Council from raising taxes or imposing fees on District residents.

Taken together, these moves represent a sustained legislative effort to constrain the policy toolkit of whoever takes office at the Wilson Building in January 2027. Two larger goals of Lewis George's vision are protecting D.C.'s Home Rule and pursuing D.C. Statehood. The DC ROADS Act turns both of those into live electoral issues heading into November.

What D.C. Residents Should Watch

• Full House floor vote on the DC ROADS Act: With the bill now cleared out of committee, it could move toward consideration by the full House of Representatives. The timing of a floor vote has not yet been announced, but the House returns from recess August 31. Contact your representative and watch the House floor schedule at clerk.house.gov.
• Lewis George's transition planning: As the presumptive mayor-in-waiting, watch for any formal transition office announcements, policy working groups, or coalition-building moves — particularly on transportation and congestion pricing — between now and the November 3 general election.
• DDOT's next steps: The March 2026 DDOT study on a $10 downtown entry fee remains on the books. Whether the agency advances that study into a formal proposal — or shelves it pending the election — is a key signal of where city policy is heading.
• D.C. Council response: Norton has continued to oppose the DC ROADS Act as part of a broader pushback against what she describes as federal overreach into D.C. Home Rule. Watch for any formal D.C. Council resolution or joint statement responding to the committee vote, which would signal how the local legislative branch intends to coordinate with the incoming administration.
• November 3 general election: The 2026 Council of the District of Columbia election will be held on November 3, 2026, and will be the first council election to use ranked-choice voting following the implementation of Initiative 83. The Home Rule debate — and who controls the Wilson Building and key Council seats — will define D.C.'s ability to fight back.

Sources: WJLA/7News · DC News Now · Legis1.com · Rep. Eleanor Holmes Norton's office · NBC4 Washington · The Washington Post · Greater Greater Washington · Janeese Lewis George campaign platform · House Press Gallery calendar · The DC Line