(a) Twenty-six states have an official fruit, 2 of which picked their official fruit based on suggestions from children.
(b) Washington, D.C. is named in honor of our first president, George Washington, who is symbolically associated with the cherry because of the well-known tale of the president, as a child, and a certain cherry tree, the moral of which was the importance of honesty.
(c) Every year, the District of Columbia holds the Cherry Blossom Festival, which includes a parade and other events celebrating the beauty of the cherry tree and the original gift, in 1912, of 3,000 cherry trees from the city of Tokyo to the people of Washington, D.C.
(d) Washington, D.C. is more closely associated with the cherry than any other fruit.
(e) The matter of an official fruit was studied by the students in Mr. Bunton's class at Bowen Elementary School, and they proposed that the cherry be named the official fruit of the District of Columbia.
(f) The District of Columbia Board of Education supports the students.
(g) The cherry is hereby designated the official fruit of the District of Columbia.
(Sept. 29, 2006, D.C. Law 16-171, § 2, 53 DCR 6227.)
HISTORICAL AND STATUTORY NOTES
Legislative History of Laws
Law 16-171, the "Official Fruit of the District of Columbia Act of 2006", was introduced in Council and assigned Bill No. 16-721 which was referred to the Committee of the Whole. The Bill was adopted on first and second readings on June 6, 2006, and July 11, 2006, respectively. Signed by the Mayor on July 18, 2006, it was assigned Act No. 16-440 and transmitted to both Houses of Congress for its review. D.C. Law 16-171 became effective on September 29, 2006.
Editor's Notes
Former § 1-171 has been recodified as § 1-151.
