District of Columbia Attorney General Appointment Reform Act of 2025
The District of Columbia Attorney General Appointment Reform Act of 2025 would change how the District’s top legal official is chosen. It would require the President to appoint the Attorney General for the District of Columbia, with the appointee serving at the President’s pleasure and without Senate confirmation. The term would align with the President’s term, and the current Attorney General’s term would end on enactment. The bill also provides a narrow rule stating that employees in the Office of the Attorney General for the District of Columbia are not Federal employees unless a law says otherwise. In short, the bill shifts DC’s chief legal officer from a locally selected position to a presidential appointment with presidential-terms alignment and without Senate involvement. The bill, introduced in the House (H.R. 5179) and referred to the Oversight and Government Reform Committee, would amend the District of Columbia Home Rule Act to implement this appointment structure. The current DC Attorney General would immediately leave office upon enactment to make way for the new appointment framework.
Key Points
- 1The Attorney General for the District of Columbia would be appointed by the President, not by a local body or with Senate confirmation.
- 2The Attorney General would serve at the pleasure of the President; there would be no Senate advice-and-consent requirement.
- 3The Attorney General’s term would coincide with the President’s term (i.e., not on a fixed local four-year cycle independent of the President).
- 4The current Attorney General’s term would terminate on the enactment date of the bill.
- 5A rule of construction clarifies that DC OAG employees are not Federal employees for purposes not specified by law.