Initial observations on the Mayor's FY25 budget proposal

Earlier this week, the Mayor presented the Council and the city with one of the most difficult budgets in recent years. Revenues are expected to slow, while the needs continue to rise. The challenge is to accommodate the first without ignoring the other.

My colleagues and I and our talented staff have begun the process of digging into the budget, finding the good and identifying the programs and services that we cannot in good conscious cut.

We simply cannot balance a budget on the backs of our most vulnerable residents or by eliminating services that are key to how we live in the District.

Here are some of my observations so far:

The budget proposal zeros out the Pay Equity Fund — a permanent, recurring cut of $63.5 million for early childhood educator salaries. It also zeros out the HealthCare4ChildCare initiative which helps bring compensation packages more in line with DC Public Schools educator benefits.

We simply can’t give a pay raise to workers one year and take it away the next. People have built plans on the expectation of a more livable wage and it’s not right to pull the rug out from under them. Moreover, we chose to invest in early childhood education for the benefit of working families – quality childcare is a critical to child development and helping working families grow and thrive.

This budget also completely eliminates the Office of the Ombudsperson for Children – for the second or third time since I created the office through legislation and the Council overrode the Mayor’s veto of its establishment. At $1.6 million, this is a small office with a huge impact on the lives of children and the future of services for youth, especially those simultaneously involved in foster care and the juvenile justice system. With all the other cuts in early childhood health and safety, I do not believe this is a wise decision. We also cannot let up on investments in public safety, and it is unfortunate to see that the Mayor’s proposal eliminates a mechanism approved just last year that directs parking revenues in the U St. corridor to coordinating non-enforcement services that impact safety.

This is not the time to shirk our responsibility to create a more equitable tax structure. It’s not right that the Tax Revision Commission has again pushed off making difficult decisions. I have been a consistent champion of progressive revenue-raising policy to support essential programs supporting our residents. Now is the time to make bold changes in our revenue structure that make residents better off.

It’s not all bad news, of course!

Public transit must be frequent and reliable, and I applaud the Mayor for ensuring that continues by including $200 million more for WMATA operations. Residents, our economy, and our city infrastructure rely on WMATA and this is non-negotiable. This is why in the current year’s budget I worked to establish 24/7 service on 14 bus lines across the District. I’ve already heard from residents the difference that 24-hour service has made, especially for service workers.

In Ward 1, the budget includes projects that will improve our public spaces and programs. It provides funding for school modernization projects at Tubman Elementary School and Bruce-Monroe at Parkview Elementary School; for affordable, beautiful, dignified housing units and a community park at the former site of Bruce Monroe; for the Rita Bright Family & Youth Center in Columbia Heights; and for more than $1 million in enhancements at KC Lewis Fields.

The budget also preserves the curbside compost collection pilot at its current level of 9,000 households.

As Chair of the Committee on Public Works & Operations, it’s a high priority for me to ensure that our most critical workforce is protected. We rely on employees to collect trash and leaves, plow snow and sweep streets – all essential government functions I know residents will feel acutely if DPW does not have the staff needed.

In the weeks and months ahead, I will be watching for false choices between taking care of our neighbors, public safety, our quality of life, and fiscal responsibility, if we take the right approach, do good work, and have some courage.