The DC Council faces some tough choices as it considers the fiscal year (FY) 2013 budget. Mayor Gray’s proposal adds funding in some areas, but also makes cuts that have real-life and real-fiscal consequences.
Take homeless services. The number of residents in homeless families in DC is skyrocketing’up 75 percent since 2008’but the District’s shelter system is already over capacity. So what to do? We can put our heads in the sand but that comes with a high price tag. Right now, DC is spending $3,000 a month to put some kids and parents in need of shelter in motel rooms. When winter comes, and the District is under legal obligation to find shelter for families when temperatures dip below 32 degrees’the city will be spending a lot more.
That is money down the drain — resources going for poor-quality services that meet needs in a short-sighted way.
Or we can decide to work toward long-term solutions that will move families toward stability and the city as well. In homeless services, that means helping kids and parents move into apartments that are both better living environments than hotels and cheaper. We think of it as budgeting for a better future. DCFPI urges the DC Council to put our money toward a better future and preserve the top items on Mayor Gray’s revenue contingency priority list.
The options and the impacts:
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MONEY DOWN THE DRAIN BUDGET |
MONEY FOR A BETTER FUTURE BUDGET |
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* Spends millions on New York Avenue motel rooms for homeless families–$3,000 a month per family–because DC’s shelter system is over capacity and the fiscal year 2013 budget doesn’t have enough money for emergency shelter. |
*Allocates $7 million of local dollars to homeless services (number one on the priority list) to make up for lost federal funding so kids and parents have safe shelter and adds $4 million more toward stable housing for our homeless families. |
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* Spends hundreds of millions on DC public schools yet some kids can’t concentrate in class because their parents keep moving them from sofa to sofa because there aren’t any affordable houses or rental units. |
*Keeps $20 million for the Housing Production Trust Fund in place (number four on the priority list) to maintain and build affordable units and puts an additional $2 million into the Local Rent Supplement Program so families have a chance for an affordable unit now. |
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* Spends millions of dollars on job training programs but DC fails to assess the readiness and barriers to work so job acquisition and retention is unlikely. |
* Puts $14.7 million toward Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (number two on the priority list) so parents will have sufficient benefits for their children while they access the services they need to find and retain employment. |
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*Spends tens of millions treating bad health outcomes because 20,000 residents are afraid to go for acute care because they can’t afford it. |
*Restores $23 million to the DC HealthCare Alliance (number three on the priority list) so that everyone in DC can have access to hospital-based medical care when they need it. |
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*Spends tens of millions on uncompensated care on emergency room visits and homeless services because disabled residents who can’t work can’t survive. |
*Puts $2.4 million in local dollars toward Interim Disability Assistance to help residents as they apply for Supplemental Security Income (SSI). |
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*Spends millions in public safety because crime victims can’t get housing and other vital assistance. |
*Restores $2.1 million in local funds to the Office of Victim Services (number five on the priority list) so crime victims get help when they need it. |
