From the office of Chairman Phil Mendelson:

“DC Council Chairman Phil Mendelson released the following statement regarding the District’s Fiscal Year 2025 Budget proposal.

“The Mayor handed the Council a budget with hundreds of millions of dollars of cuts in critical programs like the Early Childhood Educator Pay Equity Fund, the Childcare Subsidy Program, Universal Paid Leave, Access to Justice and domestic violence programs,” Mendelson said. “The budget I am proposing restores all these programs. A vast majority of the money I am using for these restorations comes from tax revenues the CFO withheld from the Mayor’s budget formulation, as well as a small reduction in the fiscal stabilization reserve fund.”

“This isn’t the first time the Council has drawn from reserves for budgets,” Mendelson said. “The city’s goal is to have 60-days spending in reserve. Right now, we have over 60 days’ reserves. With this budget, we’ll have 62 days.”

The Chairman’s recommendations include increasing our supports for public EDUCATION by: (more…)