Must See Updates:
Introducing Opportunity DC's monthly newsletter
Public safety package advances in DC Council
Seize this golden opportunity, with advocacy!
Opportunities to testify at FY24 agency performance oversight hearings
News you can choose - key stories and sources worth reading
The Lead: Welcome to Opportunity DC's Newsletter!
With this newsletter, Opportunity DC aims to make the actions of the DC government more accessible and relevant for District residents like you. In a town where many people’s day jobs intersect with national or international politics, our role is to share information that helps civically-minded Washingtonians stay informed and provide low-lift opportunities for you to make a difference. All politics, it’s said, is local. And local politics is all we’ll be talking about here.
Opportunity DC seeks to represent the majority of District residents, who are overscheduled, underrepresented, and often unheard by lawmakers. We are the renters and homeowners, taxpayers, voters, workers, and employers who envision great possibilities for the District of Columbia but don’t necessarily have the time or inclination to shout about it on social media. Together, we advocate for broadly supported policy solutions and commonsense leaders to move DC forward – for everyone.
This newsletter will highlight opportunities for you to engage with your local government and drive better results and solutions to the challenges we face in DC, including public safety, the uncertain future of downtown, housing shortages, inequitable economic growth, and the pandemic’s lingering effects on our youngest residents.
Public Safety Package Advances in DC Council
DC closed out 2023 with alarming crime statistics – more people murdered than in any year since 1997, carjackings and other vehicle theft up 82%, and robberies up 67%. DC Council has opened 2024 with a comprehensive legislative package to stem this unsettling rise in crime.
Introduced by Ward 2 Councilmember Brooke Pinto and featuring key provisions of Mayor Bowser's public safety bills introduced in 2023, the Secure DC package brings together more than 100 interventions from different bills that target public safety and reducing crime in DC. Secure DC addresses public safety gaps by disrupting cycles of violence, increasing accountability for crime, and improving coordination among DC and federal agencies responsible for law enforcement.
Following passage out of the DC Council’s Committee on the Judiciary and Public Safety, on Feb. 6 the Council moved the legislation to a second reading by a 12-0 vote. While amendments can still be made, Councilmembers appear to have heard constituents’ concerns about crime and are supporting this omnibus legislation. The Council plans to have their second and final vote on Tuesday, March 5th.
The Washington Post produced a helpful summary of the legislation as proposed. A related Post article and a story broadcast on DC News Now quoted Opportunity DC Executive Director Malcom Fox, who noted that crime against DC residents, visitors, and businesses are “undercutting D.C.’s economic comeback following the pandemic.” Opportunity DC has helped inform and influence the legislation through public-opinion polling, direct voter advocacy efforts, and a letter to officials signed by more than 100 DC business owners and civic leaders.
Seize This Opportunity, DC
If you’re concerned about crime’s impact on the quality of life in the District of Columbia, please take one minute to tell your elected representatives to pass Secure DC. Just click here to email your Councilmembers and make your voice heard. You can learn more about the Secure DC omnibus here.
Also, government performance oversight hearings have started! These hearings give residents the chance to weigh in on how DC agency functions affect their lives.
News You Can Choose
In each newsletter, we highlight recent media stories and features that connect to issues on the mind of Opportunity DC’s coalition. A January article by Washington Post reporter Emily Davies brought to life several topics we care about, including the well-being of DC youth and neighborhood safety – and highlighted one promising approach to address them. Davies spent time with DC 14-year-old Rashad Bates, his mother, and one of Rashad’s mentors, Jawanna Hardy, of the anti-violence nonprofit Guns Down Friday.
A resulting letter to the editor noted how new funding from the DC Council for the University of the District of Columbia could lead to more social workers in DC – another solution for addressing the underlying issues that contribute to crime and violence in our city.
Source Material
Here we recommend resources to help you understand and engage with local politics in DC. With public safety legislation being debated in the DC Council, the Metropolitan Police Department’s statistics put numbers to the crime increase that Secure DC seeks to stem. Check out MPD’s “at a glance” summary of crime reports this year vs. last, and dig into offense-specific tables and maps along with historical data.
Sneak Peak
We hope you enjoyed our first-ever newsletter and found it informative! Future newsletters will include more legislative updates, low-lift opportunities to engage local elected officials, and poll results when we conduct polling. If you have any suggestions for topics you'd like included, please let us know!
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