Budget restorations will lower cost of living for hundreds of thousands of District residents and invest in District’s growth, despite federal headwinds

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 
June 9, 2026 
Contact: Erik Salmi 
202-445-0834

Councilmember Allen, Chair of the Council’s Committee on Transportation and the Environment, joined his colleagues on the DC Council in unanimously approving an FY27 budget of $21.2 billion dollars, including: $72 million for the Pay Equity Fund to support early childhood educators and $150 million for childcare subsidies, restoring and expanding DC’s paid family leave benefits to allow workers to care for their families, expanding health insurance coverage for low-wage residents, investing millions more into lowering residents’ utility bills, and restoring funding for upcoming union negotiations for District first responders and other employees. 

Much of the revenue used to restore the Mayor’s proposed cuts came from decoupling from the federal tax law and tapping into one of the District’s four reserve funds — both of which are only one-time funding solutions. It is likely the Council will take on the larger issue of sustained revenue for future budgets separately from the budget process this fall.   

“The Council isn’t going to leave tens of thousands of District residents out on their own. We’re fending off a federally imposed recession with mass layoffs and program cuts, so now’s not the time to further limit basic healthcare, housing, and education,” said Councilmember Allen. “I don’t know if most people fully appreciate how hard some families are struggling right now. Today, the Council funded affordable and high-quality childcare. We funded the ability to take off work to care for a newborn or a sick relative. We funded health insurance for our most vulnerable. We’ve funded hundreds of permanent supportive housing vouchers for homeless families and adults. Yes, DC is navigating stormy waters right now. But this moment demands we act responsibly to let our values lead, not retreat from them.” 

On the topic of increased revenue: “I think the Chairman was able to use one-time funds to make deeply meaningful changes and repairs to the proposed budget. But we need to recognize that the next few years are going to be lean, especially after the Tax Review Commission abandoned its work to reform our tax laws right at the finish line. The Council needs to take seriously a discussion on revenue sources alongside spending in the fall, away from the frenetic deadlines of the budget,” said Councilmember Allen.  “The District is one of the few jurisdictions that budgets four years at a time, and it’s very good practice. It allows us to be more predictable, which I think is in everyone’s best interest.” 

Councilmember Allen is especially grateful to see Chairman Mendelson identify an additional $7.9 million in funding to add to his Committee’s enhancement at its budget vote to restore cuts to the Sustainable Energy Trust Fund, one of the District’s fastest tools to lower residents’ utility bills, and for fully reversing the cuts to the Access to Justice program to provide legal representation to low-income residents, a program also supported by the Committee.