‘Mayor Bowser remains firmly committed to all communities in D.C.,’ according to a statement from the Office of LGBTQ Affairs. (Washington Blade file photo by Michael Key)
Funding for D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser’s Office of LGBTQ Affairs has been cut by $600,000, from $2.3 million in the current 2025 fiscal year to $1.7 million for fiscal year 2026, according to a spokesperson for the office.
The spokesperson, Gabby Vincent, told the Washington Blade in a statement that the office’s fiscal year 2026 funding “maintains key LGBTQIA+ programs originally proposed by Mayor Bowser and buildings on FY25.”
Both the mayor and the city’s chief financial officer have noted that a significant drop in tax revenue due to President Donald Trump’s sweeping reduction in the D.C. area federal workforce and a decision by Congress earlier this year to cut the city’s current FY 2025 budget by $1.1 billion would require the city to make across the board budget cuts.
Bowser has since invoked a little-known federal law that gives D.C. the authority to spend an amount of its own funds without congressional approval that would reduce the impact of the congressional budget cut from $1.1 billion to $410 million. But the mayor and city officials have said that the smaller reduction along with the decline in tax revenue would still require cuts in city programs.
According to Vincent, the cut in the LGBTQ Affairs Office budget will not reduce the number of the office’s six full-time employees. And she said the office will continue managing 110 Housing Choice Vouchers, which provide apartment rental support for low-income residents.
She said the funding reduction would result in a cutback in funding for “special projects,” including the Black LGBTQ History Preservation Commission, which was created by a law passed last year by the D.C. Council. Among other things, the commission and a committee created by the law are preparing a detailed report on the history of the Black LGBTQ community in D.C.
“Funding for the Violence Prevention and Response Team (VPART) and LGBTQIA+ Cultural Humility Trainings remain intact and annual grant funding, approximately $1 million, was also preserved,” Vincent said.
“Mayor Bowser remains firmly committed to all communities in D.C., and this budget reflects her continued support for programs that ensure residents can live safe, healthy, and affirmed lives,” she said in her statement.
Vincent said the LGBTQ cultural training program is intended mostly for housing providers and “first responders,” and covers LGBTQ-related issues such as health disparities, legal protections, and inclusive workplace practices. She said the trainings have been performed under contract with outside organizations, including the LGBTQ support organizations Whitman-Walker Health and SMYAL
The Office of the D.C. Chief Financial Officer, which prepares the full written D.C. budget document, including funding amounts for all city agencies and programs, had not yet released the budget document as of late Thursday. The Blade will be reviewing that document upon its release to determine funding levels for a wide variety of other LGBTQ-related programs advocated for by the D.C. LGBTQ Budget Coalition.
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