Statement: Councilmember Robert White’s Press Conference Remarks on Unethical Behavior Within DCHA
Good morning, I’m At-Large Councilmember Robert White. I called this press conference because last week a whistleblower shared a new complaint with my office about DCHA, which, when taken with the seven other internal investigation reports the Committee on Housing has received from the agency, paints a picture of extensive unethical and illegal behavior occurring […]
Statement: With ERAP Funds Depleted, Councilmember Robert White Urges Boost in Safety Net for Renters and More Affordable Housing
The Department of Human Services (DHS) has announced that Emergency Rental Assistance Program (ERAP) funds are expected to run out in May, and applications will close today. There are still seven months left in this fiscal year, and residents’ need for rental support is not going away anytime soon. I am calling on Mayor Bowser […]
Statement: Councilmember Robert White Condemns Federal Infringement on District Home Rule
Yesterday, President Biden announced that he will not veto a disapproval resolution that would forbid the District from implementing criminal code reforms passed unanimously by the DC Council. This is a serious attack on DC’s right to home rule and self-governance–the first overturning of a local law in over 30 years. This is nothing more […]
Councilmember Robert White’s 2024 Budget Letter to Mayor Muriel Bowser
February 23, 2023 The Honorable Muriel Bowser Mayor of the District of Columbia John A. Wilson Building 1350 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW Washington, DC 20004 Dear Mayor Bowser: As you prepare your proposed fiscal year 2024 budget, I would like to bring your attention to several shared priorities for your consideration. My budget requests seek to […]
Councilmember White Sends Letter to City Administrator Donahue Requesting Emergency Plan to End Housing Voucher Backlog
10 members of the Council supported this letter as cosigners, including Chairman Mendelson, Councilmember McDuffie, Councilmember Bonds, Councilmember Henderson, Councilmember Nadeau, Councilmember Pinto, Councilmember Lewis George, Councilmember Parker, Councilmember Allen, and Councilmember Trayon White.
Councilmember Robert White Statement on the McPherson Square Encampment
Helping people get housing is the solution to the problems of people staying in the encampments. We have enough housing vouchers to house people, but the system to access the vouchers is severely backlogged. Executing encampment clearings while people sit on waiting lists for support is cruel and is slowing the process of ending encampments. […]
Statement: More Affordable Housing and Resident Input When City Gives Developers Public Properties – Why I Re-Introduced the Common Ground Act
Responding to the District’s affordable housing crisis and displacement of longtime Washingtonians, this week I was proud to introduce the Common Ground Amendment Act of 2023. This bill significantly reforms what the city does with public land it no longer uses. My goal with this bill is to use public lands to create more affordable housing, […]
Statement: Councilmember Robert White on the Council’s Vote to Override the Mayor’s Veto of the Revised Criminal Code
Today, I joined with Council colleagues and voted to overturn the Mayor’s veto of the revised criminal code because I do not believe that throwing it out keeps us safe. Like most District residents, I am alarmed by the shootings and violence that seem to be increasing. For families who have lost loved ones, I […]
Councilmember Robert White Statement on DHS Ending Pandemic Emergency Program for Medically Vulnerable People
The Department of Human Services (DHS) has announced that it will phase out the Pandemic Emergency Program for Medically Vulnerable Individuals (PEP-V) in part due to the lapse of federal government funding to support the program. In this transition, we must ensure that DC residents experiencing homelessness who are currently being housed temporarily in hotels […]
Statement: Councilmember Robert White Supports Achieving Mayor’s Goal of 15,000 New Downtown Residents in Five Years, With a Focus on Equity
As a longtime champion of converting unused downtown office space to affordable housing, and as the new chair of the Housing Committee, I laud Mayor Bowser’s goal of housing 15,000 residents downtown over the next five years. The District is facing a housing crisis that has real implications for both our residents and our local […]