D.C. law requires holding some accused people without bail before trial.

What it does

The bill requires holding people charged with violent crimes before trial. It also requires cash bail for people charged with failure to appear, obstruction of justice, and rioting. It requires cash bail for burglary and robbery charges. People accused of these crimes must pay money or give property to get out. The bill adds first-degree burglary and robbery with weapons to dangerous crimes.

Who it affects

People accused of violent crimes in Washington, D.C. are affected. Judges lose power to decide each case based on history, job, or family ties. People who cannot afford bail may stay in jail before trial.

One thing to notice

The bill removes judges' power to make decisions about each person's case. It requires holding or bail for broad groups of accused people.

From the analysis of the bill text, linked under Primary records below.

Where it stands

3 cosponsors: 3 Republicans.

• Sep 8, 2025 — Introduced · Congress.gov: “Introduced in House”
• Sep 8, 2025 — Referred to House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform · Congress.gov: “Referred to the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform”
• Sep 10, 2025 — Markup held in committee · Congress.gov: “Committee Consideration and Mark-up Session Held”
• Sep 10, 2025 — Reported out of committee · Congress.gov: “Ordered to be Reported (Amended) by the Yeas and Nays: 26 - 19”
• Nov 19, 2025 — Passed the House · Congress.gov: “On passage Passed by the Yeas and Nays: 237 - 179 (Roll no. 298).”

Dates and quoted wording are Congress.gov's action record; the timeline shows status changes, not every procedural step.

Money around this bill

3 groups reported lobbying about this bill. They filed 3 reports from Dec 2025 to Jun 2026.

Those reports show $65,000 in lobbying spending. Each report lists about 13 bills. So that money was not all for this bill.

More groups named this bill than 61% of bills with any report.

Elise Stefanik, who sponsored the bill, received $294,750 from PACs for the 2026 election.

• Council of the District of Columbia — $30,000 in 1 report
• Conference of Provincials of North America — $20,000 in 1 report
• National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (nacdl) — $15,000 in 1 report

Lobbying is legal. These reports show who lobbied about this bill, not what changed.

Words to know

• bail — Money or property a person gives to get out of jail before trial.
• dangerous crimes — Serious crimes the law says are a threat to public safety.
• obstruction of justice — Blocking or getting in the way of a court case or police work.
• lobbying — Trying to influence lawmakers about a bill. Companies and groups pay people to do this.
• PACs — Groups that collect money and give it to candidates for office.
• sponsored — To sponsor a bill is to introduce it in Congress and put your name on it.