The Final Vote

Dear Friends,

Budget season has finally come to an end and I am pleased to report that overall we were able to fund many very important investments critical to improving the quality of life for Ward 7 and District residents like restoring funds to Wards 7 and 8 schools that suffered budget cuts, accelerating the construction of the new hospital by one year, and securing $15 million for my Birth-to-Three For All DC legislation.

We began the Council’s legislative meeting on Tuesday, June 18, 2019, having $9 million in surplus funding for the construction of new full-service grocery stores in Wards 7 and 8, as I had previously reported. On behalf of Wards 7 & 8 and District residents, my office was excited about working with the Deputy Mayor for Planning and Economic Development to end food deserts. However, by the end of Tuesday’s legislative meeting, I was very disappointed that the Council decided to sweep the $9 million in cash from the District’s surplus funding which was allocated funding pursuant to DC law under the provision of the “East End Grocery Incentive Act of 2018.” Wards 7 and 8 account for 82% of the District's food deserts. East End residents have already waited far too long for the city to use its surplus funds as an economic tool to bring full-service grocery stores, retail amenities and sit-down restaurants to the 150,000 people who live in Wards 7 and 8.

Also during Tuesday's legislative meeting, I moved an amendment, with Councilmember Kenyan McDuffie, to restore the dedicated funding to the sports wagering revenue to implement my Birth-to-Three legislation and fund violence interrupters through the Office of Neighborhood Safety and Engagement and NEAR Act implementation.

In December 2019, there was a commitment made by numerous members of the Council that 50% of all net revenue from sports wagering would be evenly split between Birth-to-Three and violence interrupters. The 50% in sports wagering revenue for Birth-to-Three was to be invested in a new early childhood development fund to pay for the cost of care and teacher salary scale increases, and the 50% of net revenue for the NEAR Act was to be deposited into the Neighborhood Safety and Engagement Fund. However, unbeknownst to me and others, the Council's Judiciary Committee repealed this Fund in the FY20 Budget Support Act leaving no place to put the dedicated violence interruption money. It is unconscionable that the Council is willing to postpone any efforts to fix these funding issues. We will bring this legislation back again soon, prior to the approval of any contracts on sports wagering, because I will not support sports wagering unless we restore the two dedications on the revenue.

In closing, thank you for your continued advocacy and support. We accomplished a lot but there is still much more work to do!

In Service,
Vince

Final FY20 Budget Numbers

FY20 Major Victories
Increased the timeline for the construction of the new hospital by one full year. It is now scheduled to open December 31, 2022.

$15.032 million ($3.757 million annualized over four years) of funding reduced from the UMC subsidy was used for DCPS and charter schools contributing to a Council-wide solution of $5.353 million to the 31 DCPS schools that received funding reductions in the proposed budget. Funding has been restored for Burrville Elementary, CW Harris Elementary, Drew Elementary, Inspiring Youth Program (CTF), JC Nalle Elementary, Plummer Elementary, Randle Highlands Elementary, Neval Thomas Elementary, and HD Woodson Senior High School.

Worked with Council colleagues to add $15.864 million for the Birth-to-Three For All DC Act:

Home visiting for Early Head Start - $4.037 million
Cost of Care and Teacher Salary Scale Study - $1.898 million
Subsidy Reimbursement Rate for Cost of Care - $7.400 million (Includes $5m from the Mayor's budget.)
Healthy Futures - $1.526 million
Healthy Steps (funding 2 new sites) - $600,000
Lactation Professional - $323,000
Help Me Grow - $80,000

Ward 7 Parks and Recreation

Increasing Public Safety in Our Neighborhoods

$81,247 for additional crime cameras in Ward 7 areas
$100,000 for the Office of Attorney General’s Cure the Streets Initiative

Tackling Pedestrian and Traffic Safety

$250,000 for the planning and design of a traffic turnaround at the intersection of Kenilworth and Eastern Avenues, NE
$150,000 for “Vision Zero” safety improvements at Minnesota Avenue, Nash Street, and 48th Street, NE

Healthy Food and Nutrition Programs
An additional $100,000 for the Produce Plus Program
An additional $80,000 for the Produce Rx Program
$100,000 for the Healthy Corners Program
$64,272 to support Joyful Food Markets Program

Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services
$1,125,000 in additional funding for the DC Department of Health to continue opioid antagonist kits to distribute to police officers, other agencies, and community providers
$383,000 - grant for Club Memory Program and Alzheimer's support services, with additional focus on people with early onset dementia
$534,537 - Dementia Services Coordinator

ICYMI: Improvements to the District's Feeder Lines are now Underway!
"I started the DC PLUG initiative during my tenure as Mayor. As such, I was pleased to join District residents on Friday, June 14th to celebrate the kick-off of this long-awaited improvement to the District’s feeder lines. Over time, under-grounding of these power lines will markedly improve reliability of electric service." - Vincent C. Gray

VINCE IN THE COMMUNITY

4th Annual Stop the Violence and Increase the Peace Rally

3rd Annual PAVE Policy Summit

Maya Fest Community Celebration 2019

House of Ruth's Kidspace Groundbreaking Ceremony

DC Water Ward 7 Town Hall Meeting

Bullying is Not Dope Community Event at Mayfair Gardens

2019 Capitol Pride Parade
"It takes no compromise to give people their rights...it takes no money to respect the individual. It takes no political deal to give people freedom. It takes no survey to remove repression." -
Harvey Milk

First Annual Ward 7 Scholars Luncheon at
Del Frisco's Double Eagle Steakhouse

What a great time students, parents, principals, my staff, and I had at our First Annual Ward 7 Scholars Luncheon on Wednesday June 19, 2019. I was delighted to recognize some of our high achieving scholars at various Ward 7 middle and senior high schools. Many thanks to Del Frisco's General Manager Kyle Gaffney for hosting us and your incredible generosity.

In addition to celebrating dads this month, let's help raise awreness about men's health issues and encourage routine doctor visits. Here's a link to men's health-related resources: Men's Health Resource Center.

HOW CAN WE HELP YOU?
Please let us know how we can help. If you need assistance, please reach out to me or my staff by calling my office at (202) 724-8068 or contact my team listed below.