Congress Missed 30-Day Window to Repeal DC Tax Law, City AG Says

The resolution passed by Congress two weeks ago failed to roll back a Washington, DC, tax law and shouldn’t upend filing season in the nation’s capital, the district’s top legal officer found in an opinion issued Tuesday.

Republicans in Congress passed the resolution (H.J. Res 142) under the 1973 District of Columbia Home Rule Act, which allows Congress to disapprove of the city’s laws. But such resolutions can repeal a district law only if they are passed within 30 days of transmittal to Congress, DC Attorney General Brian Schwalb (D) wrote.

“Because Congress acted outside the Home Rule Act’s procedures that give legal effect to ‘disapproval of’ the Council’s act, HJ 142 operates to express Congress’s unfavorable view of the Temporary Conformity Act and not to repeal it,” Schwalb wrote, referring to the DC temporary law that passed in December.

The resolution doesn’t state that it applies retroactively to the 2025 tax year, so there are no changes to the current tax season, Schwalb wrote.

The opinion is more ammunition in a potential legal battle with Congress about the true effect of the resolution, which could even face lawsuits from DC residents who may get standing in court if they get smaller refunds or have to wait for a long time while the city tweaks its tax forms.

The issue has caused confusion in the middle of tax-filing season. The district’s temporary law (B26-0457) decoupled from 13 tax code changes in the GOP federal tax law enacted last summer and allocated some of the avoided revenue losses to fund expanded tax credits for children and low-income residents.

The law expires Sept. 25, when DC will once again follow the federal tax code absent further legislative action.

The Trump administration and Republicans have lambasted Democratic-led states for choosing to sever their state tax codes from the federal law changes.