The resolution, titled the Clemency Board Waiver Authority Congressional Review Emergency Declaration Resolution of 2025, addresses an urgent need to amend the Clemency Board Establishment Act of 2018. Specifically, it seeks to authorize the Clemency Board to grant a waiver of the five-year waiting period for applicants seeking a pardon. The Council of the District of Columbia has declared this an emergency due to the impending expiration of an existing emergency measure and the need to ensure continuity in the law while a temporary measure undergoes congressional review.

The resolution outlines that the emergency measure, approved on March 4, 2025, is set to expire on June 18, 2025, and the temporary measure enacted on April 22, 2025, cannot take effect until after congressional review. To prevent a legal gap between the expiration of the emergency measure and the implementation of the temporary measure, the Council has determined that immediate action is necessary. As such, the resolution will take effect immediately following its adoption after a single reading.