In the 2027 budget, DC is set to make serious cuts to the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program, which provides financial support to low-income families with children. And in the mayor's budget, she proposed cutting certain families' benefits even sooner. If the Council doesn't take action, it will directly harm thousands of DC children. The changes include stopping benefits after 60 months, ending cost-of-living adjustments, and increasing sanctions for not meeting strict work requirements.

Thanks to the work of advocates, the mayor's 2027 budget proposal reverses course on the worst of planned cuts to the Alliance Health Care Program AND added dental and vision coverage to both Alliance and the Healthy DC plan. As part of the Keep DC Healthy Coalition, Legal Aid is urging the Council to make these investments in healthcare and further expand eligibility and covered services.

The Access to Justice Initiative in DC funds legal services organizations, including Legal Aid DC, that provide free legal advice and representation to low-income residents. Despite the overwhelming need, the mayor proposed an 86% cut to funding for the program. We urge the Council to again protect funding that provides thousands of residents with legal help each year.

The mayor's proposed budget provides no new funds for housing vouchers and makes further cuts to the Emergency Rental Assistance Program (ERAP) even as evictions have climbed. When applications for the ERAP opened in fall 2025, hundreds of tenants stood in line for hours just for the chance to apply. The DC Council must invest in these programs to meet the needs of tenants struggling with increasing rent and cost of living.

Legal Aid DC worked closely with the DC Office of the Attorney General on introducing new legislation that would reform DC's child support system. Right now, the DC government takes child support money away from parents who receive DC financial assistance (TANF) and uses it to fund government operations. This means low-income parents often only receive a portion of the support meant for their children — and sometimes none at all. Legal Aid fully supports the passage of the Child Support Improvement Amendment Act of 2026.