As our city faces two pandemics, COVID-19, and racial injustice, my committee made critical investments in several key areas. We worked to address the needs of the District’s seniors, returning citizens, LGBTQ community, Advisory Neighborhood Commissions, public safety, racial equity, housing, education, environment, and government buildings. The full council is scheduled to hold its first vote on the budget on July 7th. The final vote is July 28th.
I appreciate the work and support of my fellow members of the Committee on Facilities and Procurement. Here are some critical investments we secured in our committee budget markup:
· Invested in returning citizens by funding housing vouchers, a pilot program to connect them with employers who can provide them w a long-term career, extended an outstanding paralegal training program and funded $300,000 to support orgs serving returning citizens.
· Invested in the senior citizens to whom our city owes a debt of gratitude with 20 housing vouchers for low-income seniors to ensure they have stable housing and can age-in-place with dignity.
· Invested in our LGBTQ neighbors to ensure that they have safe and affirming space regardless of age, with $100,000 for a senior community dining program, ten housing vouchers for LGBTQ seniors, and a rent abatement for the DC Center.
· Strengthened the Advisory Neighborhood Commissions, an essential part of our governance with funding for Implicit Bias Training, shared services, and technical support.
· Strengthened public safety by expanding violence prevention with a $200,000 investment in the Cure the Streets Initiative at Office of the Attorney General and advanced a civilian police complaint board for Metro Transit Police.
· Invested in housing with $100,000 for outreach to connect homeless residents with support services. We also funded $200,000 to the Emergency Rental Assistance Program, which helps residents facing evictions. We also identified over $350,000 for public housing repairs.
· Invested in education by adding $300,000 to the At-Risk student funding.
· Funded $1.4M to the Renewable Energy Future Amendment Act, making DC a leader in combating climate change by helping the District use its properties to produce renewable energy through solar and other renewable energy.
· Invested in the safety of our children by funding $2M for lead abatement at our playgrounds. We also added almost $1.7M to replace and repair roofs, windows, and HVAC systems at District facilities.
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