Norton Work on Stimulus Keeps DC Treated as a State & Gets Big Payout for Construction (2/13/09)
Norton Work on Stimulus Keeps D.C. Treated as a State and Gets Big Payout for Federal Construction Here
11 a.m. Saturday Press Conference Will Feature a D.C. Resident Using the New $8,000 Homebuyer Tax Credit and a D.C. Business Leader Using Business Tax Credits to Lay Out D.C. Benefits
February 13, 2009
Washington, D.C. - At Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton's press conference tomorrow, 11 a.m., during her 9th Annual Tax and Information Fair at the Washington Convention Center, 10 a.m. - 1 p.m., the Congresswoman will give a detailed explanation of the specific benefits - more than $.75 billion - to the District of Columbia in the stimulus bill passed by the House today, 246-183, but it is already clear that D.C. will get a large additional benefit in jobs from Norton's chairmanship of the Subcommittee on Economic Development, Public Buildings, and Emergency Management. The General Services Administration, which reports to Norton's subcommittee, received $5.55 billion for the construction and repair of federal buildings, specifically important to D.C. because more federal real estate is located here than in any other jurisdiction. Norton insisted on an amendment for $3 million for pre-apprenticeship and apprenticeship training programs to help women and minorities get a foothold in high-paying construction jobs, and she worked with the Highways and Transit Subcommittee because its share of stimulus funds nationwide was larger for a similar program, totaling $20 million for training in the construction trades.
"My job was to make sure the District was treated as a state to maximize our benefits, and the figures show that we were treated accordingly," Norton said. "This was one time that being a federal city has paid off in dollars and cents."
Norton pressed successfully for funding of her major project, the Department of Homeland Security headquarters, and got the full $650 million released to build the first building in a complex of buildings for five agencies on the campus of Saint Elizabeths in Ward 8. This project alone is expected to create 32,800 jobs, and to stimulate retail and commercial development in the ward. Also, a unique set of additional jobs will be available from the $8 billion for a high-speed railway, $1.3 billion for Amtrak, and $25 million for the Smithsonian Institution's repairs; and the Congresswoman has been assured of funding for the National Mall and parks in D.C. neighborhoods. Although direct funding for the National Mall was removed from the final bill, a portion of the $146 million in the final bill for repairs in the National Park system will be available for the National Mall, as well as for neighborhood National Park Service parks in the District.
The Congresswoman expects to have the final D.C. figures for school construction, home weatherization, redevelopment of abandoned and foreclosed homes, Title I education; Pell Grant increases; and other programs broken down tomorrow at her press conference. Benefits to the District include a new $8,000 homebuyer tax credit that does not have to be paid back and that will apply in the District, trumping Norton's $5,000 home buyer tax credit in some, but not all, cases.
Appearing at the Congresswoman's press conference will be PEPCO President Thomas H. Graham to discuss how PEPCO and the city will benefit from the stimulus, and the business tax credits, including Norton's tax credits for District businesses that employ District residents, and a D.C. resident ready to take advantage of the new $8,000 homebuyer credit on a house here in D.C. Norton will introduce Jackie Pelt, who will offer tax preparation services throughout the tax season at the Far Southeast Strengthening Collaborative, which is in the same building where Norton's Southeast District office is located. The press conference will be held during Norton's 9th Annual Tax and Information Fair, where more than 150 tax professionals from the Internal Revenue Service, the D.C. Department of Tax and Revenue, and AARP will provide free tax preparation and electronic filing for more than 500 residents.
The Congresswoman offers this service each year to help mitigate the insult to D.C. taxpayers, who pay federal taxes but lack reciprocal representation in Congress. For more information about what to bring, the Congresswoman asks residents to visit her website at https://www.norton.house.gov/. In addition to getting their taxes prepared, tax fair participants will learn more about the transition to digital television from representatives from the Federal Communications Commission. Residents will also be able to open a credit union account for direct deposit of their income tax refund.