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To download this list of emergency information, click here.

IMPORTANT NOTICES

• Sign up for AlertDC to receive text messages about the latest information on weather.
• Sign up for MetroAlerts to receive transportation updates via email or text message.
• Bulk trash pickup and street sweeping is suspended for Tuesday. Daily trash and recycling pickup services will be determined on Tuesday morning.

TRANSPORTATION INFORMATION

• Metrorail will operate on a regular weekday schedule on Monday evening. The rail system will close at midnight.
• On Tuesday, the rail system is expected to open at 5 a.m. with service above and below ground. All stations will be open. Trains will operate on a Saturday schedule (about every 12 minutes on each line).
• On Tuesday, SafeTrack shuttle buses between Franconia-Springfield and Pentagon will not operate.
• Metrobus will operate on a severe snow weather plan on Tuesday. Metrobus service on Monday evening may be delayed or detoured due to road/weather conditions.
• MetroAccess paratransit service is suspend as of 4 p.m. Monday. There will be no service on Tuesday.

Dear Resident,

It’s certainly March Madness (or global warming): After enjoying summer-like temperatures last week, the District is poised to experience the biggest snowstorm of the season. District government agencies have been preparing for the nor’easter over the weekend, and we will have people and equipment in place for whatever comes over the next 48 hours. Let me know if you have any questions or concerns, and please check on neighbors who might be less mobile, particularly our seniors or residents with a disability. You can find a list of warming centers here and track the District’s snowplows here.

With various threats to our local community on our minds—not only the storm, but various deleterious policies being implemented or proposed on the federal level such as immigration, health care and budget proposals—I wanted to share with you a moment from last week that gave me immense hope for our city.

After an engaging conversation with Glover Park neighbors and Advisory Neighborhood Commission (ANC) 3B last Thursday night, I was approached by a mom and her two children. I had noticed the three listening attentively in the second row of seats. I found out the reason they came that night is that Amar, a second grader at Stoddert Elementary, and her brother, Jakob, a fourth grader at Stoddert, were really upset by the national political dialogue and wanted to do something. Their mom suggested they get involved in their local community, and the three came to the ANC meeting to learn more about what they could do. Amar and Jakob said they were very interested in the issue of childcare, and also how to expand recreation opportunities, including summer camp slots. They said they would advocate for these items in the budget, and I told them to pick a date to visit me at the Wilson Building. It was the highlight of my week.

The Committee on Labor & Workforce Development will hold a Performance Oversight Hearing on the Office of Risk Management, the Office of Labor Relations and Collective Bargaining, and the Department of Human Resources.  The meeting will be held on Wednesday, March 1, at 10am in Room 412 of the John A. Wilson Building.

A draft copy of the agenda is below, along with agencies' performance oversight responses.

• Performance Oversight Hearing Agenda
• Performance oversight responses from the Office of Risk Management, the Office of Labor Relations and Collective Bargaining, and the Department of Human Resources

Dear Resident,

We are living in unusual times, both in national and local politics. I want to thank all of you who are taking action, calling, emailing, and rallying to support our values as a city and as a country. I especially want to thank those who took action by contacting members of Congress to protect our ability to make decisions about what is the best policy for the District of Columbia. Your efforts are making a difference! Keep it up, and keep your ideas coming!

On the local front: It is oversight and budget season at the Wilson Building! Our version of March Madness is the best opportunity for you to tell me and my colleagues your priorities for how your tax dollars should be spent. The schedule is here. I also encourage you to attend Mayor Bowser’s budget engagement forums in the next week, which are listed below.

On Wednesday, March 1, 2017 at 9:45 a.m., the Committee on Labor and Workforce Development will hold a roundtable in Room 412 on the Compensation and Working Conditions Agreement between the Office of the State Superintendent of Education, Division of Student Transportation and Teamsters Local 639 Approval Resolution of 2017 (PR 22-0105). A draft agenda will be posted prior to the Roundtable.

If you have any questions, please contact Ari Weisbard, General Counsel to the Committee, at [email protected] or (202) 727-8203.

Below is a statement from Councilmember Elissa Silverman (I-At Large), on Mayor Bowser returning the Universal Paid Leave Amendment Act of 2016 to the Council unsigned:

“I’m thrilled that the District of Columbia is now one step closer to helping working families by implementing paid family leave. I’m happy for the many people who shared very personal stories with me—often heartbreaking stories—about choosing between caring for a loved one or keeping a paycheck. This program will help them weather the critical life events when they need help the most. It also helps our employers, especially our small businesses, provide this important benefit.

The bill is now on its way to congressional approval, and I expect the legislation will become law soon. This is only the beginning; there is much work to be done to implement the legislation and make it truly a benefit to our workers, our businesses, and our city. I look forward to working with Mayor Bowser and my DC Council colleagues over the coming months to make sure we have the strongest program possible.

The Labor and Workforce Development Committee will hold a performance oversight hearing on the Office of Employee Appeals and the Public Employee Relations Board. The meeting will be held on Wednesday, February 15, at 10:30am in Room 120 of the John A. Wilson Building.

A draft copy of the agenda is below, along with agencies' performance oversight responses.

• LWD Performance Oversight Hearing Agenda 02-15-17
• Performance oversight responses from the Office of Employee Appeals and the Public Employee Relations Board

Dear Resident,

Congress is voting TOMORROW evening on a bill to prevent D.C. from implementing Death With Dignity, legislation passed by an overwhelming majority of the D.C. Council last fall and signed into law by Mayor Bowser. Rep. Jason Chaffetz (R-UT), Chairman of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, will hold a markup of the disapproval resolution Monday evening to repeal this District law—and this isn’t the first time it’s happened. Women’s reproductive health rights, the District’s common-sense gun laws, and voter-passed marijuana initiatives have also been challenged.

As you may have read in my newsletter last week,  this is the first of what looks to be many more attempts by this Congress to undermine the District’s authority and the rights of our residents.

It’s now more important than ever to rally! My colleagues and I are doing all we can to protect our city’s well-being, but we need your help!  

Here are four immediate things you can do to tell Congress to do their job and leave D.C. alone:

At-Large D.C. Councilmember Elissa Silverman introduced two bills at today’s D.C. Council legislative session to help ease the burden on the District’s working families. The first bill would evaluate the need for more non-traditional child care providers and slots for parents who work in hourly and shift-based jobs. The second bill would help increase affordable housing options for lower income residents.

“Access to child care and affordable housing are two critical services we can provide to make our city a place of opportunity for everyone who wants to live here,” Silverman said.

In response to the District’s high demand and high cost of child care, Silverman introduced the Non-Traditional Child Care Needs Evaluation Act of 2017. The bill was co-introduced by At-Large Councilmember Robert White, Ward 2 Councilmember Jack Evans, Ward 3 Councilmember Mary Cheh, Ward 4 Councilmember Brandon Todd, and Ward 6 Councilmember Charles Allen.

Dear Resident,

The days since Jan. 20 have been long and taxing on our city, on our country, and, indeed, on ourselves. But, in this challenging time, I have been uplifted by the activism and engagement of D.C. residents and others across the country and the world. Keep it up! The District of Columbia and our residents are particularly vulnerable, and we will need to work together as a community to protect the policies our city values.

Let’s pause for a moment on this. You may have read in the Washington Post that Republicans in Congress are working to repeal the Death with Dignity Act recently passed by the D.C. Council and signed by the mayor, to loosen our gun-control laws, and to restrict the use of local funds for reproductive health services in the District. And that’s just for starters. That’s why I joined with our Congressional Delegate Eleanor Holmes Norton on Capitol Hill last week, along with Mayor Bowser, Chairman Mendelson, and other colleagues, to tell Congress to let locally elected officials do the job that our voters asked us to do and to leave us alone! Give us local control to set the policies that work best for our community, such as being a sanctuary city. Let me repeat: The District will remain a sanctuary city despite threats and bullying by Congress, and we will not support any legislation this new administration puts forth that forces residents to live in fear of their safety or well-being.

I am working with our mayor and her federal relations team, along with my colleagues, to craft effective strategies to deal with this Congress and this White House. But I want and need your help! First of all, keep up the activism and engagement. Second, many of you have expertise in the federal realm. Send me your ideas on how to protect the best interests of D.C.! The best way to do that is send me an email at [email protected]. I look forward to putting them into action!