Congress Poised to Block $1 Billion in Local DC Spending

Thank you to all who have called members of Congress this week. It's really making a difference! After House Republicans recklessly voted to cut $1 billion local dollars from DC's budget on Tuesday, the Senate is now our last hope. Passing a continuing resolution that cuts DC's budget will have real and devastating impacts:

❌ Police & public safety cut by $240 million
❌ Public schools cut by $400 million
❌ Cuts to core government services, including WMATA, totaling $600 million

The Senate vote could be as early as today – and you can learn more in a video I shared yesterday. Whether it's on your coffee break or over lunch, I urge you to please call Senators to tell them not to cut DC's local budget – which wouldn't save them a dime in federal spending.

Here's where we need your support today:

DMV-Area Senators:

Thank them for their support of the District and region so far, and especially Sen. Alsobrooks, who's filed an amendment to protect the District's budget, and encourage them to stay strong and not cut DC's local budget:

• Chris Van Hollen (MD): 202-224-4654
• Angela Alsobrooks (MD): 202-224-4524
• Mark Warner (VA): 202-224-2023
• Tim Kaine (VA): 202-224-4024

Key players to target:

• Senate Appropriations Committee members (both R and D), including:
  • Susan Collins (ME), Chair: 202-224-2523
  • Patty Murray (WA), Vice Chair: 202- 224-2621
  • Bill Hagerty (TN), Chair, Financial Services & General Government Subcommittee: 202-224-4944
  • Jack Reed (RI), Ranking Member, Financial Services & General Government Subcommittee: 202-224-4642
  • Lisa Murkowski (AK): 202-224-6665
• John Thune (SD), Majority Leader: 202-224-2321
• John Barrasso (WY), Majority Whip: 202-224-6441
• Chuck Schumer (NY), Minority Leader: 202-224-6542
• Thom Tillis (NC): 202-224-6342
• Bill Cassidy (LA): 202-224-5824
• Rand Paul (KY): 202-224-4343

If you make your way through that list, move on to other Senators on both sides – most have little idea what's happening locally given the huge implications they're wrestling with nationally. Forward this email to your friends and family in other states, too.

Every voice and every call makes a difference, and I'm seeing this through conversations with Senate offices.

I'll include some talking points again, in case they're helpful:

Please don't vote to cut the District's local budget. Support Sen. Alsobrooks' amendment to allow DC's FY25 budget to continue without disruption.

1. The cuts proposed in the Continuing Resolution will immediately jeopardize public safety and core government functions. The unprecedented decision to decimate the District's budget mid-year would result in immediate and far-reaching cuts to our most critical government services, including police officers, firefighters, and teachers. Those agencies’ budgets are mostly salaries, so a reduction of $1.1 billion will require immediate RIFs, furloughs, and hiring freezes. This will make our streets less safe, lengthen wait times for fire and EMS calls, keep people on the street who could move out of homelessness, delay trash collection, and freeze teacher hiring.
   
   
2. These are DC funds, not federal funds – paid by our residents – and if cut, they would go unspent. Because these funds come from locally paid tax dollars, they won’t somehow return to the federal government if they're cut. A 16% cut to the District’s local spending in this current year – which we're already halfway through – won't result in "efficiency," and it will mean these local tax dollars literally sit unused and wasted in a lockbox while city services deteriorate.
   
   
3. Including these cuts would have a devastating and immediate impact on the District’s economy and undermine our shared goal of ensuring the nation’s capital remains a place all Americans can be proud of – especially when combined with the recent economic forecast indicating we’re moving toward a local recession in our four-year financial plan due to federal government layoffs. Moody’s rating agency is now considering downgrading the District’s bond rating due to the Administration's layoffs, which will make borrowing more expensive and cost much more to build or repair schools, bridges, and roads. This will exacerbate the situation further.

Finally, let me dispel any notion that DC receives extra federal funding or that our budget is mostly made of federal funds. Our budget is overwhelmingly funded by local tax dollars, just like every other state. About 25% of our budget comes from federal funding, mostly through major entitlement programs like Medicaid and Medicare. That percentage is right in line with most states.

Again, I'm thankful for the support we've gotten from Senators, including Mark Warner (VA), who said the unprecedented cuts would affect our public transportation system for the whole region, and Senator Angela Alsobrooks (MD), who filed her amendment last night to allow DC's FY25 budget to continue without disruption.

Thank you,

Charles Allen