The D.C. Council’s passage this week of the Secure D.C. omnibus public safety bill might mark an important step toward addressing the current crime crisis. But as council member Kenyan R. McDuffie (I-At Large) said after the bill passed its first reading, “There isn’t a magical switch that will be flipped.” Changing the culture of violence pervading the city, as well as addressing acute socioeconomic problems, will require more from public leaders and the community.
During the council’s debate, member Trayon White Sr. (D-Ward 8) — who voted present when the bill passed 12-0 — contended that there is a connection between poverty and crime and pleaded for more resources for his ward, which has both in abundance.
Do poverty and violent crime go hand in hand?
Whatever the answer, it cannot be said that city officials have been sitting on their hands. At issue is the effectiveness of what’s being done.
The list of the city’s undertakings is as long as it is big-budgeted.
There’s the Office of Neighborhood Safety and Engagement (ONSE), created to address violence in the District while assisting grieving and trauma-stricken families. Funded in 2024 at $31 million — up from $5.7 million in fiscal 2019 — ONSE focuses on violence prevention and public safety.
ONSE also has an Office of Gun Violence, which houses the Building Blocks program launched in 2021. Since then, that program has granted $2.6 million to individuals and community organizations via “mini-grants” of $5,000 and “mini-plus” grants of $15,000 to fight violence in targeted neighborhoods. In fiscal 2024, the program has awarded 12 mini-grants and 16 mini-plus grants totaling $300,000.
The $88 million Department of Youth Rehabilitation Services earmarks nearly $70 million for youth and family programs.
Next is the D.C. Department of Human Services, operating with an approved 2024 budget of $855 million.
This department administers the program for Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, which gives aid to hard-pressed families so children can be cared for in their own homes. This program aims to reduce government dependency, prevent out-of-wedlock pregnancies, and support forming and maintaining two-parent families.
The DHS also provides services to the city’s homeless, supports transitional and permanent supportive housing, and has a youth-services division that focuses on strengthening families, improving school attendance and decreasing youth court involvement.
Less discussed is a DHS program known as Career Mobility Action Plan (a.k.a. Career Map), which gives assistance and personalized coaching to help needy families work their way toward jobs and earnings goals. As participants earn more, Career Map qualifies them for cash payments and rent reductions up to $10,000 to make up for losses in government-provided cash, food, health care and child-care benefits.
Contrast Career Map with another D.C.-government-sponsored project, called Strong Families, Strong Futures. This project, funded through the Office of the Deputy Mayor for Economic Development, gives new and expectant low-income mothers a no-strings-attached grant of $10,800 over the course of a year, ostensibly to improve the family’s earnings. That program got a strong boost from former deputy mayor for economic development John Falcicchio, who resigned last March after being accused of sexual harassment.
The Strong Families program was featured in a Feb 1. Post article, which reported that some recipients “used the funds to set up their first savings account or buy baby formula” or to catch up on bills. But it also described a stay-at-home mother of three who used her lump-sum $10,800 payment to cover a five-day, $6,000 trip to Miami with her children, joined by their father, all sporting new clothes, shoes and gadgets. She spent $180 ahead of the trip to get her hair and nails done. In a matter of months, the rest of the money was gone.
The story also cited a mother of two who chose to receive her $10,800 in monthly payments of $900. She spent nearly $600, or more than half of a month’s payment, on a celebration for her son’s birthday. He was turning 1.
It just can’t be said that the D.C. government is turning a blind eye to people and communities in need.
But just as the city is starting to scrutinize the criminal justice system, it’s also time to closely examine and objectively evaluate the laundry list of programs and activities aimed at disadvantaged residents and impoverished communities. Are these much-ballyhooed programs doing what they are intended to do? Are they cost-effective?
Equally critical, does the city have the capacity or even interest in probing such questions?
The D.C. Council, with government oversight responsibility, should use upcoming budget hearings to delve into how well — or poorly — these taxpayer-funded programs perform. Millions are being spent on a variety of supportive services for children and adults in low-income families. It’s time to take stock.
A five-day, $6,000 taxpayer-funded family excursion to Miami?
The council’s attention to crime and violence is welcome. While at it, lawmakers should also determine what is of value in the city’s multimillion-dollar programs.
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