By Grassroots DC, on March 16th, 2015 
Cross-posted from The District Dime Written by Wes Rivers
Sharply rising rents in the District have led to the virtual disappearance of low-cost private housing across the city, according to a new analysis by the DC Fiscal Policy Institute. Yet the District’s economy has left nearly half of its residents with stagnant incomes. As a result, a growing number of residents are forced to spend the majority of their income on rent and utilities, struggling each month to maintain stable housing and afford other necessities like food and transportation.
The new DCFPI report, Going, Going, Gone: DC’s Vanishing Affordable Housing, highlights the urgency of finding solutions to the District’s housing crisis. The Mayor and DC Council need to greatly increase investments to preserve the affordable apartments we have and to add new affordable housing to maintain the city’s economic vitality.
The number of low-cost apartments dropped nearly in half. The number of apartments with monthly rent and utilities below $800 fell from 58,000 in 2002 to only 33,000 in 2013, according to the report’s analysis of U.S. Census Bureau data. It now appears the private market has very few, if any, low-cost units. The number of apartments with monthly costs below $800 roughly matches the number of federally and locally subsidized housing units. This suggests that subsidized housing is now virtually the only source of inexpensive apartments.
Rents have risen rapidly for virtually all residents. The impact has been greatest on low-income households who have not benefited from DC’s recent economic growth. Increasingly, moderate-income households also struggle to afford rent and utilities.
Two-thirds of low-income households – with incomes under $32,000 for a family of four – spend more than half their income on housing. Even renters with incomes up to $54,000 are struggling, as one in three of these households pays the majority of its income towards rent.
The lack of affordable housing affects the ability of residents to thrive and the city to remain economically strong. Families that spend the majority of their limited budget on housing costs are forced to cut other necessities like food, health care, and transportation. The high cost of housing leads families to live in substandard housing, with problems like mold or rodents, and forces many to move frequently. Unstable and unhealthy housing puts stress on families that makes it hard for children to focus at school and for parents to keep a job, and leaves many at risk of homelessness.
The District’s leaders need to actively pursue policies that keep the few affordable apartments that remain available, while also adding to the supply of low-cost rental options. This includes funding important programs like the city’s local rent supplement program and the Housing Production Trust Fund. This could also mean strengthening Inclusionary Zoning rules so that new housing developments include more affordable options for low- and moderate-income residents.
To read the full report, click here.
By Grassroots DC, on March 13th, 2014
By Liane Scott, on July 1st, 2013 
Budget season is over. The process takes several months starting with a budget proposed by Mayor Vincent Gray, then hearings in which members of the public comment on the mayor’s proposed budget, an amended budget proposed by members of the city council, a contingency list of items that the Mayor would like to fund but isn’t sure we can afford, etc. Finally, last Wednesday, June 26, 2014 the DC City Council took their final vote on DC’s budget for fiscal year 2014, deciding on behalf of the residents of the District of Columbia how to spend our tax dollars.
As part of Grassroots DC’s mission to provide media coverage of issues that impact the underserved communities of the District of Columbia, we’ve reported on some of the issues in question on this blog. We wanted to cover more but alas, lacked the manpower. (Feel free to take that as a veiled plea to potential contributors.)
Here’s an update, as per DC’s Fiscal Policy Institute, on some of the provisions in the budget that are generally favorable to DC’s low-income and working-class residents:
Help for homeless residents. The FY 2014 budget included many increases in funding to help homeless residents or residents at risk of homelessness. Increases included:
$2.2 million increase in permanent supportive housing, which provides housing to chronically homeless families and individuals. $1.5 million increase in emergency rental assistance, which helps prevent residents from becoming homeless. $400,000 to offer services to single homeless residents to help move them out of shelter quickly and into housing with supportive services. $5 million increase to the Office on Aging, including $3.5 million in operating funds. $1.5 million in capital funds.
Help for vulnerable families and individuals. The FY 2014 budget included two changes to DC’s Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program that will improve the lives of vulnerable families with children. First, the mayor’s budget included a delay in the benefit cut for families who have been on assistance for longer than 60 months. In addition, the Council also included funding to exempt some families with severe barriers from the time limit. These protections, which most states offer, give families a break from the 60-month time limit on benefits to give them time to deal with serious issues that interfere with their ability to work such as domestic violence, illness, or caring for a family member with a disability.
Help for parents who need child care. The FY 2014 budget increased funding for DC’s Subsidized Child Care program by $11 million. This program pays part of the childcare costs for parents of young children who are in school, working or looking for work but who cannot afford child care. The $11 million will increase the number of spaces available for infants and toddlers in community-based child care programs. It will also increase the reimbursement rates paid to providers by 10%. This is the first increase since 2004.
Help with rising housing costs. The FY 2014 budget includes significant increases to affordable housing. In addition to Mayor Gray’s proposed $100 million for affordable housing, the Council added funds for key affordable housing programs that had not received an increase in the mayor’s proposed budget. Including:
An increase to DC’s Local Rent Supplement Program, which provides rental subsidies to families with very low-incomes. The Council’s budget includes $1.75 million to provide rent vouchers that will help approximately 120 low-income families obtain affordable housing. Increases to Low-Income Property Tax Relief or Schedule H, which is a tax credit for lower-income residents when rents or property taxes are high relative to income. An expanded property tax break for seniors. Under current law, senior homeowners with income under $100,000 qualify for a 50 percent cut in property taxes. The FY 2014 Budget will provide property tax reductions for seniors with incomes between $100,000 and $125,000.
On the flip side, I’m not too happy about the Council’s decision to accept Mayor Gray’s proposal to restore a tax break on income from out-of-state bonds. This will reverse legislation adopted in recent years to phase out the tax break for investments made starting in 2013. DCFPI points out that much of the tax-exempt income in DC is earned by very high-income residents, including some who earn millions from these investments. They proposed phasing out the tax break for wealthy residents while maintaining the exemption for low- and moderate residents. But the Council has proposed allowing all residents to retain the tax break, regardless of income.
On the whole, the DC . . . → Read More: DC’s Budget Season All Wrapped Up
By Guest Contributor, on September 27th, 2012 
Cross-Posted from The District’s Dime by Soumya Bhat
A new national report confirms what most DC parents already know: Child care in the District is expensive, especially compared to the rest of the nation. So as Mayor Gray and the DC Council look to reduce unemployment and get more moms and dads back to work, our leaders also need to factor in how to make child care affordable and accessible to low-and-moderate income parents.
One important way to do that in to DC is to update the reimbursement rates for the city’s child care subsidy programs to better reflect our competitive child care market. The current low reimbursement rates mean that parents sometimes have a hard time finding a child care center that will accept their child care voucher and that many centers that rely on children with vouchers are struggling to keep their doors open and provide quality services. A better reimbursement rate would allow parents of all income levels to have the opportunity to put their children in a safe, healthy and productive facility.
The report by Child Care Aware of America, a national source of child care information for parents and providers, highlights some of the financial struggles that many DC parents face. For example, in 2011, the average cost of full-time care for an infant in a DC child care center was more than $20,000 a year. That is roughly 80 percent of median income for a single mother in DC. If she has two children in child care, expenses can be as much $35,000, which is nearly twice the annual income for a family of three at the poverty line.[1]
In the District, a major barrier to providing high-quality child care to infants and toddlers is the extremely low reimbursement rates paid to child care providers in the city’s child care program. Unfortunately, DC child care reimbursement rates are pegged to 2004 child care costs. Without adequate reimbursement, providers are unable to keep up with their rising costs and continue to offer quality child care in DC. The fiscal year 2013 budget did not increase reimbursement rates for child care providers, many of which offer primarily infant and toddler care and faced financial challenges in recent years.
Another factor is that the city has put fewer resources into child care as the public education system has moved toward universal pre-kindergarten. Since the District began implementing universal pre-K in 2009, parents can choose to send three- and four-year old children to pre-K in public schools. While this was a good move for DC education, an unfortunate side effect has been a steady decline in local funding for the child care subsidy program.
As a result, several child care providers have closed their doors. According to the 2010 DC market rate survey, about 30 percent of all family home providers and 17 percent of all child care center providers operating in 2008 were no longer in business in 2010. This leads to a shortage of child care providers for families with infants and toddlers and children with special needs.
DCFPI thinks it’s time to revisit these policies and help make quality child care more affordable for DC families.
By Liane Scott, on April 15th, 2011 
So, you didn’t make it to last Tuesday’s Winning a Better Budget Dinner and Action Session at Bread for the City. That’s okay. This week Empower DC and DC Jobs With Justice will be having a free training on the DC Budget. Here are the details.
DC BUDGET TRAINING It’s YOUR Money! Where is it Going?
Tues. April 19, 2011 6:30-8:30 PM Empower DC, 1419 V St, NW (2 1/2 blocks from the U Street Metro)
Special guest Jenny Reed from DC Fiscal Policy Institute will fill us in on the details of Mayor Gray’s budget. How much money is going to subsidize DC’s for profit developers and how much money is being cut from child care, affordable housing, human services programs, etc. Being sponsored by Empower DC and DC Jobs With Justice much of the discussion will be about what we can all do about it.
The following videos, which the Grassroots Media Project produced last year at budget time, show some of the issues at stake. The first is about hits to the city’s subsidized child care program, the second is about the need for adult education and the third is about the council’s refusal to adopt a more progressive income tax code. Enjoy or, ya know, get indignant. Hope to see you on Tuesday night.
DC Doesn’t Work Without Child Care
Adult Education and the Millionaire’s Tax
Dear City Council …
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