Washington D.C. Council Committee of the Whole FY27 Budget Hearing for OSSE - May 11, 2026

The Committee of the Whole, chaired by Chairman Phil Mendelson, held a budget hearing on Mayor Bowser's proposed Fiscal Year 2027 budget for the Office of the State Superintendent of Education (OSSE). The hearing began at 4:30 PM and extended past midnight, with over 250 witnesses testifying. The majority of testimony focused on proposed cuts to the child care subsidy program and the Early Childhood Educator Pay Equity Fund, as well as reductions to adult education, community schools, and other programs. OSSE Superintendent Dr. Antoinette Mitchell and agency leaders presented the budget and answered questions from the council.

Public Comments & Testimony

• Early Childhood Education: Numerous parents, educators, and providers urged the council to fully fund the child care subsidy program at $177.1 million and restore the salary component of the Pay Equity Fund at $94.2 million. Witnesses described the devastating impact of the proposed subsidy enrollment freeze, which would effectively create a waitlist starting May 12, 2026. They warned that the cuts would lead to higher staff turnover, reduced quality, and increased financial strain on families, particularly low-income and Black and Brown families. Specific testimony highlighted that the pay equity fund had improved teacher retention (e.g., 88% retention at one center) and that the subsidy freeze would disproportionately affect infants and toddlers and facilities in higher-poverty neighborhoods.
• Adult Education: Representatives from Academy of Hope, Carlos Rosario International Public Charter School, and SOME Center for Employment Training testified in support of restoring $2.5 million in adult and family education funding cuts since FY25. They noted that 96% of adult learners are low-income, and that programs have high success rates (e.g., 85% GED pass rate, 100% job placement in healthcare). They urged the council to increase the adult learner transit subsidy from $70 to $100 per month and to adjust the UPSFF weight for adult learners from 1.0 to 1.3.
• Community Schools: Multiple witnesses, including community school coordinators and advocates, called for the restoration of $4 million in OSSE community school grants and DCPS Connected Schools funding. They provided data showing that community schools have reduced chronic absenteeism (e.g., at NOIS Educational Campus, chronic absenteeism dropped from 48.14% to 39.94%) and improved attendance. They argued that the proposed cuts would reduce the number of community schools to less than 1% of DC schools, a retreat from equity.
• Advanced Technical Centers (ATCs): Students, teachers, and workforce advocates urged the council to maintain funding for the ATCs, which provide dual-enrollment, industry credentials, and career pathways. They noted that ATCs have a 97% graduation rate and that 400 students earned nearly 4,700 college credits in three years. Witnesses opposed a proposed UPSFF weight to fund the ATCs, arguing it would divert resources from other programs.
• High Impact Tutoring: Several witnesses, including City Schools Collaborative and Empower K12, supported the $3 million recurring investment in high-impact tutoring (HIT), noting that DC students who participated in math HIT gained the equivalent of 59 extra instructional days.
• Special Education Transportation: Parents and advocates testified about the chronic failures of OSSE DOT, including late buses, lack of a parent tracking app, and the inadequacy of the self-transport stipend. They demanded that OSSE finally implement a GPS tracking app for families, which has been promised for years. The attorney for the plaintiff class in DL v. District of Columbia noted that OSSE and DCPS have not achieved compliance with the 2016 injunction for three- to five-year-olds with disabilities.
• DCI Charter School Turmoil: Several teachers, a student, and a staff member from DC International School (DCI) testified about a leadership crisis, including a 94% vote of no confidence in the executive director, excessive turnover of special education staff, and lack of transparency. They urged the council to compel the Public Charter School Board to investigate.

Discussion Items

• OSSE Budget Presentation: Superintendent Mitchell presented the FY27 proposed budget: $598 million for OSSE main, $133 million for OSSE DOT, $57 million for non-public tuition, and $1.5 billion for UPSFF payments to charter schools. She noted a net reduction of $53 million in local funds, driven by the need to fill a $1.1 billion city deficit. Key reductions included elimination of the salary supplement component of the Pay Equity Fund, a child care subsidy budget of $114 million (down from a revised $140 million in FY26), and a waitlist expected to begin May 12, aiming to reduce enrollment from ~7,921 to 6,000. She highlighted investments in ATCs ($2.4 million increase), high-impact tutoring ($3 million recurring), and a new parent-facing bus tracking app.
• Child Care Subsidy and Pay Equity: Chairman Mendelson and Councilmember Fruman pressed OSSE on the impact of the cuts. OSSE acknowledged that taking $60 million out of the early childhood sector would cause disruptions, but stated that the fiscal reality of the $1.1 billion deficit left no choice. They estimated that the single-rate payment system (eliminating quality and high-quality tiers) would save $6 million. OSSE committed to monthly public reporting on waitlist numbers and priority groups.
• Advanced Technical Centers: Chairman Mendelson questioned the rationale for creating a UPSFF weight for ATCs, noting that other worthy programs (e.g., Level 5 special education weight) have not received such treatment. OSSE argued that the weight ensures stable, sustainable funding for the popular program, which has a waitlist of nearly 1,000 students. The council expressed concern about the precedent of using a weight for a non-school program.
• Special Education and DL Injunction: Chairman Mendelson pressed OSSE on the need for additional resources to comply with the 10-year-old DL injunction. OSSE stated that current resources are sufficient and that compliance requires more focused work, not necessarily more money, but acknowledged that the pandemic set back progress. The council plans a fall hearing on special education.
• OSSE DOT and Bus Tracking: OSSE demonstrated a new GPS tracking app, Busware, which will be phased in starting in the first quarter of the 2026-27 school year (October-December 2026). Chairman Mendelson expressed frustration with the timeline and noted ongoing disagreements about student privacy. OSSE also discussed the shift to private bus routes, which now cost 20% less than OSSE-operated routes, and the reduction in total routes from 550 to 440.
• Adult Education Cuts: OSSE confirmed that local funding for adult and family education dropped from $2.5 million in FY26 to $1.15 million in FY27, a cut of $1.35 million, not just the $436,000 cited by some witnesses.

Key Outcomes

• No votes were taken; the hearing was informational for the council's budget deliberation. The council will hold a markup on May 13, 2026, for legislative measures connected to the budget, with a final vote scheduled for June 9, 2026.
• Chairman Mendelson committed to following up on several issues: (1) requesting additional data on ATC outcomes and the impact of the subsidy cuts; (2) scheduling a fall hearing on special education compliance with the DL injunction; (3) asking OSSE to provide more detail on the School Improvement Act funding needs; (4) urging the Public Charter School Board to investigate the turmoil at DCI.
• OSSE agreed to provide monthly public updates on child care subsidy enrollment and waitlist numbers, and to continue working on the bus tracking app rollout. OSSE will also share information on the literacy and math task force recommendations and explore additional philanthropic funding for the ATCs.