Congress passed the RFK Stadium bill, sending the site back to DC control. But how did it happen?

WASHINGTON — After reports that the RFK Stadium bill had been taken out of the spending bill Friday, it looked as though control over the site would not be returned to the hands of the District. But in a surprising move, D.C. residents woke up Saturday to hear that Congress had passed it.

But many thought all hope was lost on Friday — so, how did it happen?

The D.C. Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium Campus Revitalization Act, which intended to give control of the RFK Stadium site back to D.C., was included in a larger government funding bill called a “Continuing Resolution” in the final days of budget negotiations, but it failed a vote Wednesday night. The RFK legislation was not included in alternative spending bills considered by Congress, and was not part of the renegotiated federal spending bill finally passed by Congress Friday night. 

But the Senate still had business to address before it ended the 2024 Congressional session, including passing a number of pieces of legislation unrelated to the federal spending bill, through a process known as “unanimous consent.” In that process, a Senator, in this case Majority leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY), offers legislation that has already been approved by the House of Representatives for final passage through unanimous consent, meaning if no one in the chamber at the time objects, the legislation passes.

At 1:14 AM Saturday, Schumer brought the RFK bill for passage through unanimous consent. The only other Senator in the chamber, for procedural reasons, was Sen. Tim Kaine (D-VA). Since the bill had passed the House of Representatives earlier this year, it then passed the Senate through unanimous consent. It is now awaiting President Joe Biden to sign it into law.

Now, D.C. will have control of the site for 99 years. The District can potentially use it to return the Washington Commanders back to D.C., or it can be used for any other purpose that D.C. leadership deems right.

Eleanor Holmes Norton, D.C.’s non-voting congressional delegate, who co-sponsored the bill, said she would like to see the site used to build more housing.

Meanwhile, Mayor Muriel Bowser is wasting no time moving forward with plans to bring the Washington Commanders back to the District. At a ribbon cutting ceremony Monday, Bowser confirmed she met with Commander’s owner Josh Harris over the weekend about the team’s potential return to the city. 

Before D.C. secured control of the RFK site, members of the Commanders ownership team projected it could be 2030 before the team moves into a new stadium, wherever it is. But Bowser seemed to think they were looking at a timeline of 2-2.5 years. If that timeline holds, fans could be looking at the team playing in a new DC Stadium for the 2028-2029 football season-- a full two years before some fans were expecting.