Mayor Bowser Highlights Key Investments in FY2024 Fair Shot Budget

(Washington, DC) – Today, ahead of the new fiscal year, Mayor Muriel Bowser highlighted the investments included in her Fiscal Year 2024 Fair Shot budget. This approved budget includes significant investments in building a stronger, more equitable, more affordable DC.   
 
DC’s Comeback 

• $1M in additional funds for participating businesses in Creative and Open Space Modernization  
• Increase the available Housing in Downtown abatement from $6.8M to $41M in FY28  
• $69M to unlock Fletcher Johnson, Poplar Point, and bring a full-service grocery to East Capitol Gateway  
• $9.8M to fund improvements at Farragut Square  
• $6M for the Commercial Property Acquisition Fund 

 
Education 

• $145M to support a 5.05% increase to the foundation of the UPSFF 
• $20M to continue supporting schools feeling the effects of the pandemic through the Mayor’s Recovery Fund 
• $116M to support raising the wages of teachers in both public and public charter schools, increasing our nationally competitive teacher salaries by at least 12.5% since SY 2019-20 and raising average teacher salaries at DCPS to approximately $100,000 
• $5M to begin planning and implementing “My Afterschool DC,” to build towards universal after school access at priority schools and create an online central hub to increase program accessibility across the District for families 
• $17M investment in after school programs for over 15,000 students through the Office of Out of School Time Grants and Youth Outcomes 
• $9M to support college and career preparation for DC public high school students, including paid work-based learning, free college courses (dual enrollment), and the Advanced Technical Center, offering cross-sector pathways in health care and cybersecurity 
• $7.85M to continue providing high-impact tutoring programs to students to mitigate learning loss impacts caused by the pandemic 
• $1.6M to begin planning and implementing a Teacher Apprenticeship Program to train future teachers in the District  
• $5.8M to fund dedicated childcare slots for infants and toddlers with disabilities and out-of-school time slots for children with disabilities and a referral system 
• Raising the eligibility for the childcare subsidy from 250% of the federal poverty line to 300% of the federal poverty line, with an additional 2,200 children newly eligible for the childcare subsidy 
• $11.7M to provide DC residents with opportunities to earn associate and bachelor’s degrees at local universities free of charge through DC Futures 
• $4.6M to continue supporting 150 seats in the District’s transitional employment program, Project Empowerment, for participants referred by Building Blocks DC, the District’s whole-of-government approach to addressing gun violence 
• $38M for school-based behavioral health services, including clinicians in schools 

 
Major Capital Investments 

• $31M to add 3 new PACE school modernizations – Excel Academy, Beers Elementary, and Bruce Monroe @ Parkview Elementary 
• $2.1B to continue the modernizations or expansions of 40 other schools including PACE and non-PACE projects, including cafeteria renovations or buildouts for Plummer Elementary School, Hardy Middle School, and Coolidge High School 
• $90M over six years for DCPS to preserve and maintain school facilities through small capital investments in HVAC, life safety needs, athletic field repairs and upgrades, and ADA compliance 
• $6M to support strengthening schools’ classroom safety hardware 

 
Recreation 

• $2.95M for summer recreation activities and accelerated learning opportunities for students recovering from the impacts of the pandemic  
• $400,000 to create 360 additional summer camp slots across sports and aquatics programs for children and youth with disabilities 
• $1.1M to support operations at DPR facilities set to open in the fiscal year, including McMillian Community Center, Joy Evans Therapeutic Recreation Community Center, and Stead Park Recreation Center 
• $932,000 for enhanced security services at DPR priority sites 
• $750,000 for the conversion of four underutilized tennis and basketball courts into pickleball courts

 
Staying Safe and Cool 

• $1.9 million to support extended pool hours at Ballou High School for the public and provide janitorial services for all outdoor and DCPS pools 
• $5M “Splash Pad Blitz” to renovate the outdoor splash pads at 14th and Park in Columbia Heights and at the Takoma, Hillcrest, Fort Stevens, Palisades, Watkins, and King-Greenleaf Recreation Centers 
• $6M in additional funding for the development of Walter Reed Pool and pool house 
• $5.7M to replace Rosedale Pool to allow for greater capacity and functionality 
• $12M for the Rumsey Aquatic Center modernization  

 
Legacy Initiatives & Housing 

• $31M to fund the Housing Production Trust Fund at $100M 
• $2M to increase available funds for Single Family Residential Rehab 
• $4M to increase available down payment assistance through HPAP 
• $1M to expand Strong Families, Strong Futures 
• $13M to support 600 families in Career MAP 
• $150,000 to continue to support flood risk mitigation and outreach activities to increase the number of District residents who have flood insurance policies and water damage protection 

 
Expanding and Improving Public Housing 

• $139M for New Communities Initiative at Barry Farm, Park Morton, and Northwest One, including 735 new public housing replacement units 
• $115M over the next two years to rehabilitate and modernize public housing units managed by the DC Housing Authority  
• $68M for comprehensive rehabilitation of housing properties in alignment with independent needs assessment 
• $25M to prioritize urgent repairs in areas such as electrical, HVAC, plumbing, and roofing 
• $8.4M to enhance fire safety systems, including detectors, alarm systems, and suppression  
• $3.7M to enhance security systems 
• $2.1M for focused mold remediation and other efforts to reduce childhood asthma risk 
• $7.4M for staffing to maximize the effectiveness of these new investments 
• $1M for additional tax abatements for Affordable Housing in High Need Areas to allow for the creation of more affordable housing in planning areas that have the least, such as Northwest 

 
Public Safety 

• Funding the Second Chance Amendment Act criminal record sealing 
• $9M to continue the Safe Passage, Safe Blocks program to ensure students can travel safely to and from approximately 48 schools in the District 
• $8.3M to continue the DC School Connect program, providing transportation for students to get safely to District Public and Charter Schools in Safe Passage Zones in Wards 7 and 8 
• $6.7M for grants for victims of sexual assault and other victim services, including crisis intervention and advocacy 
• $4M to support high-quality education services of DOC inmates with special education needs 
• $1.2M to launch a new DC Paramedic School 
• $29M in FY24 to replace Fire and EMS emergency response vehicles, including ambulances and ladder trucks, as well as $1.2M and 2 dedicated personnel to support the maintenance of these critical apparatus 
• $277M to build a new annex to the Correctional Treatment Facility (CTF) 
• Repealing the removal of School Resource Officers from our schools 
• $2M to launch the Mayor’s Task Force on Automated Traffic Enforcement Equity and Safety pilot program 

 
Maintaining a Strong MPD 

• Continue investments in recruitment and conversion bonuses for new hires ($5.4M) and expanded educational incentives ($1.2M) 
• $2.1M and 18 additional staff to support civilianization efforts, reducing the need for sworn officers to cover civilian roles and duties 
• $1.4M for 6 staff and programming for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI), as well as employee wellness and wellbeing, to help retain officers 
• $148M for new or rehabilitated trail segments 
• $36M to continue building more protected bike lanes and $15M to continue expansion of Capital Bikeshare, including adding more than 1,000 new e-bikes to the Bikeshare fleet 
• $114M to continue building bus-only lanes and other bus priority treatments to make bus travel faster and more reliable 

 
Health and Human Services  

• $900,000 to buy down $90M of medical debt for approximately 90,000 residents 
• $42M to support rental assistance through the Family Re-Housing Stabilization Program 
• $24.4M to provide increased Medicaid rates for services in the behavioral health sector 
• $2.2M to support homeless prevention programming and outreach 
• $1.7M to support housing case management services for behavioral health service clients 
• $1M to increase the eligibility for the Safe at Home program 
• $744,600 to increase personal needs allowance for individuals with disabilities 
• $550,000 to provide free dental services for seniors 
• $240,000 to distribute tablet devices to seniors for improving wellness activities, telehealth, and socialization 

 
Government Services 

• $4.5M to expand HVAC preventative maintenance to non-DCPS facilities 
• $6.9M in new dedicated work order response funding 
• $4.5M for a new one-stop web portal for resident services 
• $4.2M to enhance cybersecurity protections through enhanced device security and proactive vulnerability remediation 
• $567K for DMV to automatically register voters when the agency issues IDs to new residents 

 
In addition to highlighting key investments in the FY2024 Fair Shot Budget, Mayor Bowser also noted the following legislative changes that will go into effect in the new fiscal year. These updates will keep money in residents’ pockets and support families in DC.  
 
Expanding Access to Fertility Treatment  
Starting January 1, 2024, under the Expanding Access to Fertility Treatment Amendment Act of 2023, DC residents who use DC Healthcare Alliance and Medicaid can have their infertility diagnosis covered, along with three cycles of ovulation-enhancing drugs.  
 
Enhancing Personal Needs Allowance for Residents Living With Disabilities 
Beginning October 1, 2023, the Personal Needs Allowance for residents supported by the Department on Disabilities Services Development Disabilities Administration (DDS/DDA) will increase from $100 to $150. Beginning January 2025, DDS/DDA plans to adjust this amount annually based on the Social Security Cost-Of-Living Adjustment. 
 
Expansion of Subsidy Eligibility for Grandparent and Caregivers  
In Fiscal Year 2024, under the Grandparent and Caregiver Subsidy Eligibility Amendment Act of 2023, DC Grandparents and Caregivers who have a child that is receiving Supplemental Security Income (SSI) will not experience any impact to their subsidies or their income eligibility when evaluated by the Child and Family Services Agency as the SSI income will be excluded from any future CFSA review.

Protecting Domestic Workers from Discrimination   
Starting October 1, 2023, under the Domestic Workers Employment Rights Amendment Act of 2022, domestic workers will now be protected under the DC Human Rights Act which will ensure that domestic workers in the District are entitled to the same rights and protections as their counterparts in other industries. Domestic workers who feel their right were violated on the job will not be able to submit claims for discrimination to the DC Office of Human Rights. 
 

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