Under 3 DC Voices

  My name is Travis Ballie, Ward 7 resident and Acting President of the 1610-1624 26th Place Condominiums Easement Areas Association, Inc. We represent eight small condo associations representing dozens of District residents, including several families with young children or expecting. I am here to testify in support of the Banning Associations from Banning Youth Amendment Act of 2023. Simply put, our babies and youth should be welcome in all our neighborhoods and their parents and caregivers deserve more early learning options in their communities.    My Condo Associations would welcome the opportunity to provide a critical service to our community if one of our neighbors were to step up and open a home based early learning center. Home based early learning centers have several advantages over early learning centers in commercial rental space.  Among those benefits, home based centers tend to have smaller class sizes, more one-on-one attention, and can often have a family like environment. Mixed age groups in home care settings can offer socialization between siblings. We know that increased access to child care, especially near where workers actually live, means new and sustained access to workforce participation for single mothers and working parents. This is an

Greetings Councilmembers and Staff, My name is Sylvia Crews, and I own. LTH Child Care is a top-rated care program in the 7th Ward District. We offer families a place to send their children to learn what they need to succeed - educationally, emotionally, and physically. We believe that all children deserve a chance to succeed. As a Childcare owner, I serve a community that depends on funds from TANF and other social services to help families with daily living. Hence, I am against the mayor’s the proposed budget cuts to TANF, the Pay Equity fund, and American Rescue Plan to Back-2-Work Child Care grants. These cuts will harm families that are the most vulnerable. If implemented, I believe this proposal will harm DC families, specifically those in its poorest neighborhoods. Families relying on TANF are often dealing with life circumstances that seem insurmountable. These families may have experienced the loss of a job, illness, injury, or behavioral health problem. Many parents struggle with poverty, homelessness, and a lack of reliable transportation.  Birth to Three services is a critical resource for these families. These services assist parents with meeting the basic needs of their children, such as nutrition, safety, and

Child Care Business Owner “Small businesses are the backbone of the U.S. economy.” It’s a common refrain touted by politicians, news outlets and others. So why don’t I, the owner of a family child care business, feel a sense of pride and recognition when I hear it?