Come in person to the last COW Budget Hearing to squeeze in one last testimony, to watch and cheer for our members' and community members' testimonies, and to demand the Council invest in a budget for care and sustainability!

This big COW (Committee of the Whole) hearing closes out the period of public oversight hearings. It is a good opportunity to testify on anything that didn't fit well into another committee's hearings or which needs one last big push before Chairman Mendelson - including about the need for revenue raisers as well as the need to reallocate police funding towards towards proven community safety solutions, like housing security.

The hearing will go all day, til at least 4 pm, and FBC folks will be there the whole day. Come for the whole day or plan for an hour or two that fits your schedule:

• Look for us at Hearing Room 500 - either right outside the hearing room or when you enter
• Come wearing your shirt or let us know if you need one
• We’ll have some Jenga activities about the Safety Net to educate the Council about the mayor’s dismantling of the safety net and other critical programs

We’ll have pizza lunch for anybody who is still there around 12:30 or 1.

There is still time to sign up to testify!

Register by May 11, 5 pm at this link: https://lims.dccouncil.gov/Hearings/hearings/2301.

You can testify on any of our recommendations (or your top concerns) and we’ll be sending guidance at the top of the week on some messages we would like all coalition members to be pushing.

Reach out if you have questions about testifying: katharine@fairbudget.org, sophia@fairbudget.org, afeni@fairbudget.org.