With the city bereft of a process for eminent domain, the objection raised by the commissioners no longer applied. Senator Hawley re-introduced his bill (S. 2332) on May 3, 1896. Determined to win passage of the legislation, the PHC hired ex-Representative John J. Hemphill (who had instigated the 1888 House subcommittee investigation) to represent it before Congress. But despite Hemphill's efforts, the bill languished in the Senate, and no action was taken by December.
