Yesterday, the House of Representatives voted on a Continuing Resolution to prevent a government shutdown. However, unlike in previous years, this resolution incorrectly treats Washington, D.C.’s locally funded budget—raised through local taxes—as part of the federal budget. As a result, the city will be forced to revert to its Fiscal Year 2024 budget. If this mistake is not corrected, D.C. will face $1.1 billion in spending cuts six months into the fiscal year. These cuts will not save the federal government a single cent but will undermine crime-reduction efforts, jeopardize school funding, and further destabilize the Metro system.
In 1997, a Republican-led Congress and a Democratic president enacted the National Capital Revitalization and Self-Government Improvement Act—“The Revitalization Act”—to address D.C.’s financial crisis. The city, despite functioning as a state, locality, and school district, lacked the revenue base to sustain itself after nearly a century of federal control left it burdened with unfunded pension liabilities. Federal spending shifts had also triggered an economic downturn, pushing the city to bankruptcy in 1996. The Revitalization Act alleviated D.C.’s pension obligations, transferred parts of its criminal justice system to federal control, and introduced independent financial oversight, ensuring responsible fiscal management. Over the past 28 years, the results have been clear: population and revenue growth, infrastructure investments, improved public safety, expanded school choice that created a national model, strong bond ratings since 2003, and a financially stable city.
In the 1990s, Congress intervened to save Washington, D.C. from collapse. Today, a simple clerical error threatens to undo decades of progress. Cutting $1.1 billion from D.C.’s budget will not reduce the federal deficit, but it will gut essential services, making the city less safe, less functional, and less livable, and less welcoming to visitors. The 1997 Revitalization Act was a moment of responsible stewardship. Congress must uphold that legacy by fixing this mistake and allowing D.C. to manage its own budget.