‘If it somehow sounds like there's anger in my voice, there is': Tensions rise as DC Council waits for the 2026 budget
The announcement came as the Mayor celebrated a ribbon cutting and grand opening at the Riggs Crossing Senior Residence, a new 93-unit affordable housing development supported through the Housing Production Trust Fund (HPTF).
The HPTF is a dedicated fund that helps support affordable housing in the District.
'My fiscal 2026 budget is a growth budget,' Bowser said. 'It's about creating economic activity to replace a shrinking federal footprint and it's about investing in our future. This $100 million investment in affordable housing is part of that vision for our future.'
Proposed federal bill would cut DC budget by roughly $1 billion, city officials say
Still, the announcement happened as tensions over the 2026 budget continue to rise.
'There are press releases and press conferences and what we need is for the Mayor to focus on getting this supplemental done,' said DC Council Chairman Phil Mendelson, who criticized the Mayor during a legislative meeting Tuesday. 'If it somehow sounds like there's anger in my voice, there is. Because the legislature has been played on this.'
The full 2026 budget was supposed to be delivered to the DC Council on April 2 — however, that still hasn't happened.
'We have no interest in hoarding the budget. We are done, we're talking about it, we want it to move. We have some things that need to happen,' Bowser said.
According to the Mayor, her administration is waiting to deliver the full 2026 budget until it has more clarity on the fate of the current 2025 budget.
That budget is in limbo after Congress passed a spending plan in March that reverted D.C. to its 2024 spending levels. The Senate passed the DC Local Funds Act, fixing this issue. However, the House hasn't passed the legislation, leaving D.C. with a multimillion-dollar gap in its 2025 budget.
'It's simply not true that we're holding [the 2026 budget] up for kicks. We're waiting to get some resolution on the 2025 issue. … I think I'm in agreement with the CFO, that we're at the time where if there aren't fixes, we're going to have to balance 2025,' Bowser explained.
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Mendelson did not agree with the assertion that the council cannot receive the 2026 budget until the 2025 budget is fixed, however.
'The continuing resolution issue in Congress has no bearing on the fiscal year 2026 budget,' he said.
On Tuesday, he and the council passed a resolution requiring the Mayor to deliver the 2026 budget to them by May 15. Otherwise, Mendelson said he'll take legal action.
'We have a limited time, we have roughly eight weeks to consider a $20 billion budget. It's all-consuming,' said Mendelson.
'The council has 70 days by law. When they get the package, they have 70 days to look, no matter when they get it,' said Bowser.
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