DC Action appreciates the DC Council’s work to greatly improve the FY25 budget and better support investments in our children, youth, and families.
Specifically, we thank DC Council Chair Phil Mendelson for restoring $280 million to the Early Childhood Educator Pay Equity Fund, including $70 million for FY25 payments. We also appreciate the Council’s additional, multi-year funding for the Home Visiting Services Reimbursement Act of 2023, the Nurse-Family Partnership Program, and CFSA home visiting programs, and for protecting the funding necessary to improve grants to out-of-school-time programs so more children and youth can access transformational opportunities.
DC Action Executive Director Kimberly Perry said, “We are grateful to Chairman Mendelson for marking up $70 million per year for the Pay Equity Fund, however, current spending is $87 million, therefore, we are concerned about the prospect of pay and health benefit cuts for early educators if the gap of $17 million is not closed. Meanwhile, funding remains flat for the organizations that serve youth experiencing homelessness, even as the number of youth needing help has dramatically increased. Despite the pleas of young people for more mental health support, there are no investments in this area. It should disturb us all that the District has no current plan to end youth homelessness or address the needs brought forward by young people themselves.”
DC Action urges members of the DC Council to work between today’s vote and the second vote on the budget to further strengthen this budget by closing the funding gap with an additional $17 million to ensure no pay and health care cuts to early educators and to address housing insecurity for youth and families.