During last week’s budget mark-up session, the Committee on the Judiciary and Public Safety bolstered violence interruption programs and took steps toward removing police from schools; however, they missed an opportunity to divest significantly from policing.
I am here today to testify on how the Council should increase investments in permanent housing, Project Reconnect, the Emergency Rental Assistance Program (ERAP), public housing repairs, and excluded workers.
The District has an unprecedented opportunity to leverage American Rescue Plan (ARP) dollars by pairing federal funds with local recurring revenue for a set of targeted and meaningful public investments that advance racial and economic equity.
Some opponents to raising taxes on DC’s wealthiest residents or profitable businesses claim that it could cause those residents or businesses to move to neighboring states. However, these claims don’t stand up to empirical scrutiny.
A coalition of DC’s mostly Black and brown excluded workers are calling upon the DC Council to invest $200 million in cash assistance for excluded workers to help them afford basic needs such as medicine, transportation, childcare, and debt incurred […]
The Mayor’s proposed $400 million for the Housing Production Trust Fund (HPTF) in fiscal years 2021 and 2022 is historic and, if targeted as statutorily required, would go a long way in helping the District alleviate its affordable housing crisis.
Eighty percent of DC voters support raising taxes on incomes above $250,000 a year to support the District’s long-term economic recovery, a new poll from the DC Fiscal Policy Institute and DC Action shows.
DCFPI staff have delivered testimony at eleven budget hearings since the Mayor proposed her budget on May 27th. In these testimonies, we reminded lawmakers of the unprecedented opportunity to leverage American Rescue Plan dollars and raise local revenue for […]
A year into the global health pandemic, the resulting economic downturn continues to underscore the importance of substantial District investments in quality affordable housing and rental assistance for DC residents.
DCFPI envisions a future where no one is chronically homeless and no one dies without the dignity of a home. The fiscal year (FY) 2022 budget is a tool to make this vision a reality but only if the Council makes bold investments that build upon what is […]