We have long advocated for substantial reform for the rapid re-housing program in DC. The urgency of that advocacy intensified last winter, when the Department of Human Services announced it intended to start terminating almost 1000 families for reaching a time limit in rapid re-housing, even though the agency knew that nearly all of those families would be thrown into crisis as a result. In the spring of 2022, 66 organizations and experts and...
Despite Strong Community Opposition, DC Elected Officials Segregate and Exclude Immigrants from Homeless Services
On Tuesday, September 20, 2022, the DC Council passed The Migrant Services and Supports Emergency Act of 2022 without making any of the significant changes that we advocated for. Councilmember Pinto tried to amend the bill to remove many of the harmful provisions and to add in legal and safety protections for migrants. Councilmember Nadeau and Mayor Bowser strongly opposed the amendment, and managed to convince their colleagues to follow their...
Legal Clinic Priorities for Funding and Reform in 2022
Despite living in a well-resourced District of Columbia, DC residents are facing homelessness, housing instability, and crisis-level lack of affordable housing every day, so there is much work to be done to address these issues in DC in order to further housing justice. The budget process is an opportunity to do just that.
Action Alert: Pass Emergency Legislation to Stop Encampment Evictions!
Councilmember Brianne Nadeau has announced emergency legislation that would prohibit encampment evictions and the creation of “no tent” zones while also addressing some of the health and safety concerns raised by unhoused and housed residents. The Council will vote on the bill next Tuesday, December 7, and nine votes are needed for the bill to pass.
After the first vote, what’s in the budget for housing and homelessness?
On July 20, the DC Council took its first vote on DC’s Fiscal Year (FY) 2022 budget, and we are looking ahead to the final vote on August 3. With the end of the FY22 budget season on the horizon, here is how our housing and homelessness priorities have fared in the budget process thus far.
Envisioning a Path Forward: Budget and Legislative Priorities
In 2021, there are reasons for hope. It is time to envision and pursue a path forward. We reject setting our goal posts at “back to normal” because too many people were suffering prior to the pandemic, and we know that the death toll and harm of the pandemic could have been lessened if a well-threaded safety net had been in place.
