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For Immediate Release
July 8, 2020
Contact
Wanda Lockridge, 202.724.8045
[email protected]
Councilmember Trayon White Reduces the Exemption Level for DC Estate Tax to Fund Wrap Around Approach to Violence Impacting Youth
(Washington, DC) — The Council of the District of Columbia unanimously passed (13-0) Councilmember Trayon White's proposed amendment, B23-760 – Fiscal Year 2021 Budget Support Act of 2020, that would roll back recent estate tax cuts for the extremely wealthy, reducing the exemption level from 5.6 million to 4 million.
This amendment will generate approximately 1.78 million dollars in revenue, which will fund a wrap around approach to violence impacting youth. This approach combines violence interruption, mentoring, and mental health outreach, both in the school and in the community. The amendment distributes funding in the following areas:
● $650,000 to fund violence interruption. https://onse.dc.gov/service/violence-intervention- initiative;
● $550,000 to school-based mental health. https://dbh.dc.gov/service/community-response- team;
● $300,000 to community based mental health response. https://dbh.dc.gov/service/school- behavioral-health-program; and
● $284,000 for mentoring grants to serve at-risk middle school youth. https://learn24.dc.gov/page/funding-opportunities-0
Recent polling by the DC Fiscal Policy institute found that 83% of residents support raising taxes on the wealthiest to protect services and that nearly 4 out of 5 support a tax on wealthiest in order to stop cuts that will hit black and brown residents.
"Today, we took from the very rich and gave to the poor," remarked Councilmember Trayon White regarding the amendment. "Given the challenges the city faces and the wider support for more progressive taxes, we believe that a highly targeted and progressive increase in the estate tax to fund essential services for the neediest will be welcomed."
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