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Dear Friend, I want to highlight at the very top three very important events that have a major impact on the future of our city: Election Day, Budget Season, and the release of Mayor Bowser’s Re-Open Recommendations! First, Election Day! Are you a registered voter affiliated with a political party in DC, such as a registered Democrat? Then you should vote in the June 2 primary! Let me anticipate your next question: Aren’t we still under the Mayor’s stay at home order? That’s why DC has shifted largely to a vote-by-absentee-ballot election! The DC Board of Elections is encouraging DC voters to vote by mail, though 20 vote centers will be open on Election Day, June 2. This is a large decline from the 144 voting precincts usually open on Election Day. How do you vote by mail? You need to request your absentee ballot by Tuesday, May 26. That is only five days away. Here’s how you can request your absentee ballot:
The list of voting centers open on Election Day is here. Second: It’s not just election season, it is also budget season! On Monday, Mayor Bowser delivered her proposed fiscal year (FY) 2021 budget and Tuesday she answered questions about it before the DC Council. Certainly this is a different budget than we thought we’d be looking at only a few months ago. Due to declines in sales and income tax receipts, the Mayor needed to cut $476 million from the current year’s budget (FY 2020) and $578 million from next year’s budget (FY 2021). I share more thoughts on the budget below. Finally, this morning the Mayor previewed her ReOpen DC committee recommendations. You can read these recommendations here. I’m just absorbing them myself, so we’ll spend more time on this in next week’s newsletter, but I wanted to make sure you had access to them. I know this is an anxious and stressful time for everyone. I hope you are all finding safe ways to enjoy the spring weather and taking the time to unwind when you can. Stay well and continue to stay home if you can, DC. We will get through this, and if we do it in a smart and strategic way, I think we will be a stronger and more equitable city coming out of it. Please feel free to call or email my office any time with questions or concerns. Elissa. JUMP TO:
CONSTITUENT Q&AQ: I applied for unemployment insurance and/or pandemic unemployment assistance and I see that my benefits were put on a US Bank Debit card. I never received the debit card. What do I do? A: We encourage everyone to sign up for direct deposit if you can. You can do that through your claimant portal. Here’s the phone number you can call if you need to replace and receive for the first time your US Bank debit card: 855-696-3729. BUDGET
This week kicks off two months of FY 2021 budget deliberations. Now more than ever, I hope you’ll be engaged in the budget process: How we spend your taxpayer dollars is critical to a successful recovery and making DC a more equitable city. Each Council committee has a slightly different public engagement process, but all will take comments from the public in one form or another. Please let your voice be heard. Mayor Bowser delivered her proposal via a presentation to the press on Monday and then answered questions in a budget hearing with the Council on Tuesday. The budget comes in two parts: the appropriations and then accompanying legislation to enact it. With coronavirus and DC’s stay at home order lowering expected tax revenues, the Mayor also submitted significant changes to the current year’s budget, known as the FY 2020 supplemental. The details of the Mayor’s proposed FY 2021 budget, and the proposed revisions for the current year budget, can be found online here. As Chair of the Labor and Workforce Development Committee, I remain focused on how we safeguard the public’s health and move toward recovery from this incredible health and economic crisis. COVID-19 has exposed many inequities in our economy, including how those who are paid some of the lowest wages in our city are some of the most essential to keep it going. My budget priorities will be largely the same as in the past: Making sure that we are optimizing your taxpayer dollars to narrow the opportunity gap in our city and build a robust economy for all. In my committee, I will be focused on how we create and maintain career pipelines for our residents into our largest industry sectors, such as health care and IT. I also will be working with restaurant and hotel operators to implement strategies for preserving businesses and jobs. Outside of my committee, my priorities are again the same: Investing in affordable housing, education, and public safety. If you missed the hearing live, you can watch the recording of the Council’s budget briefing with the Mayor here. Upcoming Budget Hearings
As a reminder, my Committee on Labor and Workforce Development will be hearing from public witnesses on Thursday, May 28. If you have thoughts on unemployment assistance, the Marion Barry Summer Youth Employment Program, enforcement of our wage and hour laws, and how we leverage our taxpayer dollars to recover from COVID-19, please sign up! Testimony will be taken live (limited time will be available), via voice message, and by email. If you want to testify on any of the agencies in the committee’s jurisdiction, you have one week left to sign up by emailing [email protected]. A full list of hearings and FY 2021 Budget events can be found online here. CORONAVIRUS EMERGENCY LEGISLATIONThe Council unanimously passed the latest version of our “Coronavirus Support Emergency Amendment Act of 2020” on Tuesday. This bill consolidates four previous emergency acts adopted by the Council since March 17, 2020, adds a number of new provisions, and makes updates to several previously adopted provisions. Notable updates include:
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Councilmember Elissa Silverman · 1350 Pennsylvania Ave NW, Suite 408, Washington, DC 20004, United States This email was sent to [email protected]. To stop receiving emails, click here. |
