Council Chair Linda Cropp
Democrat
term ends 1998
Chair, Committee on Human Services
Member:
Committee on Consumer & Regulatory Affairs
Committee on Economic Development
Committee on Government Operations
Winner of Special Election for Council Chair
Election Date: Tuesday, July 22, 1997
Response to GLAA 1997 Questionnaire
for DC Council Chair Candidates
1. Do you support legal recognition of marriages between persons of the same sex?
I haven't really gotten to the point where I would support same-sex marriages, but I remain open to the debate on the issue and would point favorably to my support of domestic partnership benefits and my other efforts to lend support to same-sex couples and their families. The benefit; to society of stable, loving partnerships among lesbian and gay couples is very significant and I will continue to seek ways to provide community and governmental support for such relationships. Together we must continue to seek positive changes.
2. Will you oppose efforts by Congress or other parties to stop the District of Columbia from recognizing same-sex marriages performed in Hawaii or other places?
Yes. Like other states, the District of Columbia should retain the right to recognize marriages from other states, whatever their nature, and be able to extend full faith and credit to such marriages. I will personally defend the District's prerogatives under Home Rule to accomplish this.
3. Do you oppose efforts by Congress or other parties to outlaw or restrict adoptions by unmarried couples in the District of Columbia?
Yes, and I have been an active supporter of efforts to oppose Congressional action on this issue. I am very well aware of the number of children awaiting adoption in the District and the numbers of children in the foster care system. Nothing intrinsically disqualifies lesbians and gays from serving as competent, caring and loving foster and adoptive parents. The best interests of the child, as interpreted by our courts here in the District, should remain paramount. Those courts, wisely I believe, have found that lesbian and gay parents are qualified and I will continue to work to uphold that standard.
4. If Congress ever repeals the D.C. Health Care Benefits Expansion Act of 1992 that established the registration of domestic partnerships, will you vote to reenact the same law?
I will personally sponsor a re-introduction of the Health Care Benefits Expansion Act, which I of course supported when it was first enacted, if Congress should repeal the act, as they attempted to in 1995.
5. Do you support the reestablishment of the office of Human Rights as an independent, adequately-staffed, Cabinet-level agency whose Director has direct access to the Mayor?
Yes and I oppose efforts to submerge the office within the Office of Personnel. While I cannot commit to specific staffing ratios at OHR, I do think that there are untapped sources of federal dollars which we can use to process at least some of the employment related caseloads and thus free up limited District resources to cover cases that fall only under District laws. I also support the priority which has been given to processing cases involving people with AIDS.
6. Do you agree that the Boy Scouts of America is violating the D.C. Human Rights Law's ban on discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation by excluding gays from participating either as scouts or as leaders?
Yes. I was glad that OHR found that the Boy Scouts was indeed a place of public accommodation and had discriminated against the plaintiffs in a recent decision.
7. Will you vote to repeal the Armstrong Amendment, which allows religiously-affiliated private educational institutions in the District to discriminate against student clubs that promote equal rights for lesbians and gay men?
Yes, although given the current climate on Capitol Hill toward the District this might not be a wise strategy to pursue at this time, but I am certainly open to revisiting the matter when it might be a better time. Fortunately, I know of no instances where Georgetown or others are looking to invoke Armstrong to pursue bigoted policies against lesbian and gay students or employees.
8. It has recently been revealed that the District failed to spend $1 million of its own appropriated funds to combat AI DS in the last fiscal year. Such underspending jeopardizes the District's ability to receive federal funding under the Ryan White Act and contributed to the city's long delay in awarding a contract for an effective needle exchange program. What will you do as Council Chair to safeguard us against such fumbling by our health agencies?
Few things have occupied as much of my time as Chair of the Committee on Human Services as these issues. Three hours were spent with the Commissioner of Public Health during which a large amount of the time was dedicated to resolving that issue. Research on developing a process that would enable us to continue at the same spot at the beginning of the fiscal year rather than starting the whole process over is being explored. Additionally, this issue was called to the attention of the new Grants officer to focus on this issue.
9. Do you support the legalization of the medical use of marijuana when a patient's doctor recommends it as a means to combat the effects of AIDS, cancer, and other diseases when more conventional treatments for alleviating symptoms fail?
Yes, provided the efficacy of prescribing marijuana is clearly beneficial for the patient and disease. For example, marijuana has been shown to be effective in combating wasting syndrome in people with AIDS — it helps combat the deadly weight loss, and useful in fighting glaucoma and the side effects of various cancer treatments. I would not support the prescription of marijuana in some carte blanche way giving doctors or others unlimited discretion, however, clearly documented instances of its benefit deserve our support. Other highly controlled drugs can be prescribed for medical reasons, such as, morphine. What is the difference?
10. The Metropolitan Police Department, the ABC Board, the Department of Consumer and Regulatory Affairs, and the Fire Department have been neglecting their proper duties and instead have been coordinating a relentless and deliberate campaign of harassment targeted against gay businesses. What will you do to stop this systematic and discriminatory abuse of regulatory powers?
The recent "zero tolerance" policy adopted by the MPD is something in general that I support. Prominent studies, including the experiences in New York City, have shown that you can create a positive climate for the reduction of crime when you go after people who are urinating in public, committing acts of vandalism and graffiti, and offenses of that nature that are sometimes considered minor. I am concerned about recent incidences which have been brought to my attention that could indicate that lesbian and gay people may be targeted unfairly. Given the fairly positive relationship between the MPD and the lesbian and gay community I certainly encourage people to come together to work out the problems that have accompanied the implementation of this new policy and I will personally express my concerns to Chief Soulsby with the assistance of the community. I will also encourage him to meet with the community in a agreed upon neighborhood to address these concerns and other recent changes in MPD policies.
11. In 1995, the Council summarily abolished the Civilian Complaint Review Board, thereby allowing the Metropolitan Police Department to handle all public complaints about excessive use of force or abusive language by the police. Last year the Council failed to enact the Police Conduct Review Board Act of 1995, to establish an improved system for civilian review of such complaints against the police; the Council claimed there were no funds for establishing the new board. Will you vote to establish and fund the Police Conduct Review Board for FY 1998?
Currently, the MOU Partnership with the police department is recommending a process that will afford the citizens an avenue to address complaints. At this time, I would like to give that process a chance to work. I look forward to meeting with you to review the plan and to be flexible to make any appropriate changes. I have to be honest with you about the tremendous fiscal restraints under which the District is operating. There are many priorities out there that are more pressing than this one. Now that is not easy to say, but it is true. I have worked very hard recently to identify savings that we can use to fund the AIDS Drug Assistance Program, for example. My vote reflected a lack of funds and a desire to be fiscally responsible. Additional savings and efficiencies are out there and I will work to continue to find them and utilize them for other priorities, but it is a difficult task and I frankly cannot make any promises at this time.
12. Will you support legislation to authorize and regulate the issuance of liquor licenses to establishments (in designated nonresidential commercial districts) that want to offer nude dancing as entertainment?
I will remain open to discuss the possibilities. Business opportunities should be available for a variety of establishments. All establishment in the city, regardless of the type, should be located in appropriate areas.
13. The City Council has seldom aggressively exercised its oversight powers over the District government and has been too passive and reactive in addressing the mismanagement problems that routinely plague our city's administration. As Council Chair, what will you do to improve the Council's performance of its oversight responsibilities?
During my tenure as Chair of the Committee on Human Services I have distinguished myself by having regular oversight hearings on the programs under my jurisdiction. There are obviously many problems to be solved, but we have made a positive impact on quite a number of them.
As Council Chair, I will use my position as a "bully pulpit" of sorts to create a reinvigorated leadership style at the Council level whereby the Chairs of the various committees have the will and the encouragement to pursue aggressive oversight of the agencies and offices of the District government. In an era of very limited resources, we must be very conscious of our role in establishing priorities, targeting problems, and pushing for solutions, and most importantly, holding people accountable for a lack of progress on these problems. As Council Chair I hope to set a tone where problem solving is our middle name rather than finger pointing at the Congress, Financial Authority, or the Mayor. The people of the District have had enough of that and simply want us to do our jobs.
14. Our own elected officials, past and present, bear much of the responsibility for the District's current financial plight because of their reluctance to make tough budgetary decisions, to establish priorities, and to demand maximum efficiency and productivity (rather than political loyalty) from all District government agencies and workers. As Council Chair, what would you do to turn the Council's corporate culture towards a more responsible stance?
Throughout my tenure on the Council I have been a leader of the "reform" wing of the Council and fully anticipate continuing in that direction as Chair. I have voted for budgetary reductions, including shutting down the DC School of Law, and I can tell you from personal experience that it is not fun or popular to trim back budgets or programs. Unfortunately, reality dictates that we do have to do some cutting back and restructuring, and I will not shirk from my responsibility as Chair to write budgets that attempt to achieve that delicate balance between what our hearts tell us we must do and what our heads tell us we can do.
15. As Council Chair, which programs of the D.C. government would you want to cut back or eliminate so that higher-priority programs can be adequately funded rather than be victimized by indiscriminate across-the- board budget reductions?
I have actively supported cutting back, eliminating or restructuring many programs. The D.C. School of Law should be removed from the D.C. budget in order to devote more resources to programs which are a higher priority to the citizens of the District. The programs under the jurisdiction of the Committee on Human Service alone account for 25% of the District budget, so reordering and balancing priorities is not something I will need to be tutored on. For example, I have made a commitment to providing additional local support for the ADAP program and we were able to achieve $3.5 million in savings in other programs in order to devote more resources to providing life-prolonging drugs to people. I fully share your concerns about indiscriminate across-the-board reductions which have proven to be ineffectual and outright harmful at the federal level and would prove to be likewise at the local level. The good people of the District are electing us to make these tough decisions and not to simply take a meat cleaver to the bottom line. I have and will continue to make those decisions.
