Hello Neighbors:
Two weeks ago, I reported to you my deep frustration over the ways in which the Mayor’s proposed FY27 budget would gut the social safety net, while not asking anything of the District’s wealthiest residents.
Today I want to give you a more detailed look into the budget: the things that concern me and things I hope to work on as we finalize the budget over the next six to eight weeks.
Public works
Most of the agencies under the oversight of the Committee on Public Works & Operations, which I chair, were spared the large cuts we’re seeing elsewhere. There’s a $3 million increase in the budget for sanitation collection, which includes trash and recycling. And funding remains in place to handle collection of food waste—curbside compost pickup, the farmers market food waste drop-off program, and the new smart bins.
The budget includes $1.2 million more for parking enforcement, which is one of the largely unseen but critical ways we take dangerous drivers off the street. I’ve been digging into the $67 million (holy cow!) spent on snow removal this winter. I understand some of the reasons, but we need to figure out what happened there and how to avoid that kind of cost in the future.
The Office of Administrative Hearings takes a significant cut in the Mayor’s proposed budget, and while that may not sound like a big deal, it has a big impact on all of us. OAH is the agency that decides cases involving residents’ unemployment compensation, Medicaid and other public benefits, public space, rent control, professional and business licenses, and building, health, and fire code violations, among others. It’s a civil justice entity and right now they are only completing 65 percent of their cases and have a backlog of cases that won’t get smaller as long as they continue to be chronically underfunded and understaffed.
When we pass a law – to protect tenants from bad landlords, for example – and citations against the landlord don’t go anywhere because there aren’t enough judges – guess what? Those tenants don’t get justice. And the landlords come to realize there’s not much chance they’re going to get in trouble for violating the law.
Public safety
The Mayor’s budget proposes big cuts to the Office of Unified Communications – the agency responsible for handling 911 and 311 calls. Just last year alone, the agency managed 1.4 million emergency calls. A 7 percent budget reduction to the fourth busiest center in the U.S. seems crazy to me: we already hear a constant drumbeat of complaints about slow response to emergency calls.
I spent a fair amount of time focused on OUC issues in 2024, trying to get into why the agency always seems to be understaffed and not providing a core government service our residents and visitors count on. The agency is still not working up to par and cutting funding is not going to help it get better!
The budget also cuts $27.3 million from Access to Justice grants, which enable nonprofit organizations to provide legal services to people who can’t afford it, on things like public benefits, eviction, child support and domestic violence. The Mayor also reduces funding for violence intervention programs and completely eliminates the Safe Commercial Corridors Program, which provides grants to organizations in Ward 1 like the Adams Morgan BID to deliver core community services.
Ward 1 investments
Some of the key projects in the works in Ward 1 still have funding in the capital budget, which is separate from the operating budget, like parks and rec centers, and replacement housing at the Bruce Monroe site. But costs for those projects keep rising and so the funds in the budget aren’t enough to get the job done. My team and I are identifying what funds are needed and how to work with colleagues on the Council to prioritize these projects. In particular, I want to make sure that we keep moving forward on the much-needed housing units Bruce Monroe will provide.
Social safety net
The Mayor’s proposed budget would kick current participants off of programs, like housing vouchers and emergency rental assistance, childcare subsidies, and more. On top of those are cuts to other programs that help many of the same people, as they attempt to find/keep jobs and get to a place where they won’t need those programs.
Last year, the Mayor proposed gutting Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF) which provides cash assistance, childcare, and job readiness services to families with little or no income. The Council restored that $20 million cut to save the program for one year. Again, the Mayor’s budget proposes the same cut, which will kick 14,000 families and their kids off the program, implement sanctions for people who are struggling to find work, and eliminate the modest yearly cost of living increase. She also isn’t restoring health insurance coverage to people cut from Alliance healthcare last year. I wrote more about this here.
Education
The budget cuts $60 million from the Pay Equity Fund for early childcare educators, which benefits children in addition to those teachers, and cuts $25 million from childcare subsidies, which make childcare free for families that cannot afford it, allowing them to work and not have to accept other public benefits.
The Mayor appears to have cut the incredibly effective Community Schools program completely for the third year in a row. The Council has restored it twice and will have to find $2.4 million to restore it again. Community Schools is a grant program that helps schools coordinate educational, developmental, family, health, and after-school care programs to help students be successful.
The Mayor cut the Bridge the Gap Fund, which helps address disparities in student experiences across the district, ensuring support for all prek-12 educators to provide experiences such as student field trips and outdoor educational activities. It will take $700,000 to restore the fund, which is managed by the nonprofit Live It Learn It.
The Council will have to restore $300,000 for Educator Wellness Grants, which were completely cut by the Mayor in her FY27 proposal. These grants support the mental, emotional, and physical well-being of school staff supporting them so that they can adequately support our students.
What’s next?
Committees have now finished their budget oversight hearings and we’ve heard from the public and agency officials on how these cuts will impact people in their daily lives. The Council is doing something new this year that has been very positive – rather than wait to share the work of the committees right before the budget vote, we’re having weekly conversations about the budget. We’re sharing what we’re working on, where we’re filling in budget holes, and where we’re finding money we think could be transferred to another committee to fill a need. Community-based organizations have advocated for this and we’re doing it and it’s good.
Councilmember Nadeau with more on this year’s budget process and what will happen over the next few weeks.
Our next budget meeting as a group will be to look at revenue raisers – the ways in which we can make sure that those with the most are paying their fair share and that those with the least already don’t bear the full brunt of the current financial challenge.
You can and should still contact your Councilmembers with your take on what should be changed in the budget. Remember, in addition to your ward councilmember, you have five others—the four at-large councilmembers and the Council Chairman. Committees will submit their proposed changes to the budget next week. The Council Chairman will incorporate those changes into a proposal of his own, which the full Council will take up on June 9.
COUNCIL UPDATES
Freeing up more room for housing
Council gave final approval last week to my bill to make it easier to build small and mid-size buildings, to help address our housing shortage. The legislation allows buildings up to six stories to have one staircase instead of two. With modern fire suppression, sprinklers evidence shows no need for 2 stairwells. Read more about the One Front Door Act.
Sunsetting the teen curfew law
Council enacted the teen curfew law last week, which I have opposed from the beginning.
I have serious concerns about criminalizing kids for acting like kids. Policing should not and cannot be a solution to a social issue, and police should not be asked to take the lead on youth welfare.
But before final approval, we were able to make two significant changes to the law that will improve the supports for teens and reduce the harm for years to come.
The most important: Council approved an amendment I introduced to sunset the law in two years. That means that the teen curfew law won’t continue past December 31, 2028. Not only does that limit the harm, it also forces District government to come up with real solutions sooner.
Read more about this change and another amendment I proposed to prevent police from bringing teens to a detention center or police station if they are detained solely for a curfew violation.
Ensuring adequate payment to nonprofits for their work
My Nonprofit Services Preservation Amendment Act, which the Council approved last week, ensures that when nonprofits do work for the city they’ll be paid for indirect costs – the behind-the-scenes support that makes their services possible – in addition to other costs. Nonprofits are indispensable partners in carrying out the District’s mission—from providing housing and food access to youth programming and healthcare. They shouldn’t have to dip into their own funds to cover the cost of providing their services.
Enhancing the District’s ability to protect consumers
When a business repeatedly violates operating hours, sells something it’s not allowed to, doesn’t pass health inspections, or doesn’t give a refund when it should – and then continues to operate, flouting laws and not paying fines – that’s not right. There is a frustration among residents when businesses that are bad actors are not held accountable.
Last week Council passed my bill to give the Office of the Attorney General and the Department of Licensing and Consumer Protection authority to go after bad actors and hold them accountable for violations.
This includes expanding OAG’s authority in court proceedings to swiftly gather information and close a business and DLCP’s power to issue cease-and-desist orders, suspend or revoke business licenses, and summarily close businesses. This bill provides critical and long-overdue updates to the District’s consumer protection law that will hold businesses accountable and benefit consumers across D.C.
Supporting individuals with substance use disorder
Our place-based substance use disorder outreach pilot program will be permanent, following last week’s Council vote. Though the program, outreach workers build trusted relationships with people who are using drugs in public places, getting them the services they need. The program has succeeded in moving people from substance use to treatment to more successful lives. It has also led to better community outcomes in neighborhoods targeted for outreach. In less than a year at 7th and T Street NW, nonfatal overdoses were cut in half, for example. The pilot was the outgrowth of the successful “community navigators” program I funded in Columbia Heights several years ago and which has grown to include locations in wards 1, 5, 6, 7, and 8.
BRIANNE IN WARD 1
My team and I had the opportunity to meet with students from PK3 through 5th grade as part of Cleveland Elementary School Career Day. We were impressed with their knowledge of recycling and composting as we talked about our work on Vision Zero and the D.C.’s Bottle Bill at the Council.
It was great to see so many cyclists on the road today as we celebrated the 25th anniversary of Bike to Work Day! Thank you to AdMoBID for hosting a fun (and delicious!) morning pit stop!
COMMUNITY UPDATES
If property taxes on your home are past due, the lien to your home might be sold at the annual DC Property Tax Sale in July. This puts your home at major risk for foreclosure—which means you could lose your home. Legal Aid DC and Legal Counsel for the Elderly can help check if you should get property tax benefits or exemptions, apply for a payment plan or tax relief, and/or file an application for forbearance to stop a sale from happening.
If you need legal help, please call Legal Aid DC at 202‑628‑1161 ext. 7 if you are younger than 60 years old or Legal Counsel for the Elderly at 202‑434‑2120 if you are 60 years old or older by June 10.
Become a 2026 Youth Human Rights Ambassador
The Office of Human Rights Youth Human Rights Ambassador Program is now underway. Tailored for D.C. high school students, this program offers a unique platform for developing leadership abilities, nurturing civic engagement, and offering valuable tools for our youth to facilitate dialogues on diverse youth-related community issues. Applications are being accepted until June 1.
IN THE NEWS
WASHINGTON POST
Responding to ‘teen takeovers,’ D.C. passes youth curfew through 2028
“An amendment from council member Brianne K. Nadeau (D-Ward 1) sunsets the law at the end of 2028, which she said offers time for the city to work out alternative solutions that don’t include police. ‘It’s a total failure if our first option is MPD,’ she said.
ABC7
Major changes made to DC juvenile curfew moments before vote
WUSA9
DC Council passes permanent youth curfew with amendments, heads to congress
WTOP
DC Council passes permanent curfew legislation, emergency bill pulled
THE 51ST
D.C. spent $67 million cleaning up after January’s snowstorm
“Obviously, we want faster removal, and we want more cost-effective removal. It is a balancing act between over-investing and under-investing, because we are not in a position nor should we be setting aside funds we may not need,’ said Ward 1 Councilmember Brianne Nadeau, who chairs the council’s committee on public works. ‘I think there is plenty of oversight to be done, and having the numbers is the starting point.”
WUSA9
DC spent $67M cleaning up January’s snowstorm, but there are questions about where millions went
NBC4
Debate over space, safety ahead of DC vote on One Front Door Act
“I totally understand the concern. In fact, that was my first question when we started talking about this bill,’ said D.C. Councilmember Brianne Nadeau, who introduced the One Front Door Act. But Nadeau said she’s now convinced fire safety has advanced far enough to make a second stairwell in buildings up to six stories unnecessary.”
CALENDAR
Council Committee on Facilities FY27 Budget Markup
Monday, May 18, 1 pm | online and in-person
Council FY27 Budget Discussion
Tuesday, May 19, 9 am | online (public access)
Council Committee on Housing FY27 Budget Markup
Wednesday, May 20, 11 am | online and in-person
Council Committee on Health FY27 Budget Markup
Wednesday, May 20, 3 pm | online and in-person
Advisory Neighborhood Commission 1A Monthly Meeting
Wednesday, May 20, 7 pm | online and in-person (LAYC, 1419 Columbia Road NW)
Council Committee on Public Works & Operations FY27 Budget Markup
Thursday, May 21, 1 pm | online and in-person
Council Committee of the Whole FY27 Budget Markup
Friday, May 22, 3 pm | online and in-person
Council Offices will be closed in observance of Memorial Day
Monday, May 25
Council FY27 Budget Work Session
Wednesday, May 27, time TBD | online (public access)
Advisory Neighborhood Commission 1E Monthly Meeting
Wednesday, May 27, 7 pm | online
Tuesday, June 2, 12 noon | online and in-person
Advisory Neighborhood Commission 1C Monthly Meeting
Wednesday, June 3, 7 pm | online
Advisory Neighborhood Commission 1B Monthly Meeting
Thursday, June 4, 6:30 pm | online
Tuesday, June 9 | online and in-person
Council Consideration of the “Fiscal Year 2027 Local Budget Act of 2026” and the “Fiscal Year 2027 Budget Support Act of 2026”
Advisory Neighborhood Commission 1D Monthly Meeting
Tuesday, June 16, 7 pm | online and in-person (Mt. Pleasant Branch of the DC Public Library, 3160 16th St NW)
Tuesday, June 23 | online and in-person
Council Consideration of the “Fiscal Year 2027 Local Budget Act of 2026,” “Fiscal Year 2027 Federal Portion Budget Request Act of 2026,” and the “Fiscal Year 2026 Revised Local Budget Emergency Adjustment Act of 2026”
CONTACT US
Brianne K. Nadeau | Councilmember | [email protected]
Abigail Boshart | Deputy Committee Director | [email protected]
Nicole Bramstedt | Senior Legislative Assistant | [email protected]
Amanda Chulick | Senior Legislative Assistant | [email protected]
David Connerty-Marin | Communications Director | [email protected]
Sean Cuddihy | Committee Director | [email protected]
Kara Dunford | Communications Manager | [email protected]
David Meni | Deputy Chief of Staff & Legislative Director | [email protected]
Maricela Nava | Deputy Chief of Staff & Scheduler | [email protected]
Sabrin Qadi | Deputy Legislative Director | [email protected]
Niccole Rivero | Chief of Staff | [email protected]
Eliza-Roche Robinson | Constituent Services Specialist | [email protected]