Councilmember Zachary Parker

Photo of Zaniya Torres speaking into a microphone. Quote: "SOUL is deeply meaningful to us because it embodies what we all need and deserve - a sense of love, belonging, and a lasting family, even after foster care."

SOUL is a youth-driven, new permanency goal for older youth in foster care. SOUL legally recognizes the circle of loving adults in an older youth’s life who are committed to their future. We are excited to keep moving this key legislation forward! @cmzparker5.bsky.social

🚦 Today and Saturday! Join us for the third round of community engagement on the South Dakota Ave Corridor Safety Project. Details 👇🏾

💻 Virtual: December 4, 6:00 - 8:00 p.m. Sign up here: ward5.us/sdasafety
👋🏾 In-person: December 6, 10:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. @ Sojourner Truth PCS (1800 Perry St NE)

Wishing a Happy Thanksgiving to neighbors in Ward 5 and the District! I hope you're gathering w/ loved ones & taking a moment to count your blessings. I am forever grateful to be in service of this community that I love. 🍁

🗞️ Catch a shortened holiday edition of the Ward 5 Weekly at ward5.us/news

Ward 5 Weekly - November 21, 2025 - Turkey Giveaway in Trinidad - Tomorrow - Turkey Giveaway at New York Ave Rec - Tomorrow - Fort Bunker Hill Park Clean-up - Tomorrow - South Dakota Ave DDOT Meetings - December 4 & 6 - My School DC EdFEST - December 6 & 13 - HS Grad Req Feedback Session - December 8, 11, 16 - Strategic Bikeways Ward 5 Workshop - December 9 and more!

The latest Ward 5 Weekly Newsletter is out now! You can read at ward5.us/news and subscribe at ward5.us/newsletter.

Today, @chmnmendelson.bsky.social and I sent a letter to DYRS expressing our deep concerns about educational service gaps and operational deficiencies that continue to plague the Youth Services Center and requesting answers to critical oversight inquiries. 👉🏾 zacharyparkerward5.com/wp-content/u...

Limited supply. Bags will include: green beans, cornbread mix, stuffing mix, instant mashed potatoes, gravy mix, and corn. Must be a Ward 5 resident. Bring a form of identification to pick up on November 20 after registering at ward5.us/thanksgiving2025.

If you or a Ward 5 neighbor you know is in need of groceries this holiday season, please sign up for my office's Annual Thanksgiving Giveaway. We'll distribute grocery bags full of non-perishable holiday food items this Thursday from 12-5pm at Turkey Thicket Rec. 👉🏾 ward5.us/thanksgiving2025

Always a joy to bike in Ward 5! @cmzparker5.bsky.social

Ward 5 Weekly - November 14, 2025 this week's highlight's: - Thanksgiving Grocery Giveaway - November 20 - Ward 5 Family Biking Family Ride - Tomorrow - OP DC2025 Workshop - Tomorrow - Crummell Community Center Meeting - November 17 - RFK Redevelopment Scoping Meeting - November 19 - DPR Ward 5 Capital Projects Meeting - November 20 - South Dakota Ave DDOT Meetings - December 4 & 6 and more!

The latest edition of the Ward 5 Weekly Newsletter is available now! You can read at ward5.us/news and subscribe at ward5.us/newsletter.

This Saturday!! Gather: Michigan Pk Community Playground (Wynton St NE) @10:30am ➡️ End: Lost Gen Brewing featuring Silver & Sons BBQ 🍗

Today, we are testifying at the DC Council in support of the SOUL Act introduced by @cmzparker5.bsky.social.

Right now, more than half of young people in DC's foster system age out of foster care without a permanent plan, such as family reunification, adoption, or legal guardianship.

🔗 Hearing details: lims.dccouncil.gov/Hearings/hea...
📺 Catch the hearing live here on X, the Council's website, or my YouTube channel: youtube.com/live/p3cgilo...

Tomorrow, six of the bills in the C.A.R.E. for Youth Plan will get a joint hearing. I'm looking forward to hearing testimony from dozens of public witnesses and from government witnesses on how we can strengthen these bills to improve youth wellbeing in the District. 🧵👇🏾

"SOUL family is important to me because it provides a pathway that has been waiting to be explored. It lets young people take the wheel and be in control of their own life and their permanency, which is something I did not have." - Jamarri White

"I had a lot of people determining what direction my life should go, down to my education, my health, and my housing. SOUL acts as a bridge between youth and trusted adults as partners, not as a wall or barrier between them." - Princess Simms

"We have young adults who are faced with choosing services or community. The reality is that you can have all the services in the world, but if you don't have a community, you won't be able to reach your full potential." - Cierra Bailey

"SOUL stands out as a transformative initiative in the child welfare system because it was led by lived experts - people like me who have had direct, personal experience with the system." - Keniya Parks

Tune in tmrw as @cmzparker5.bsky.social & @cmbrookepinto.bsky.social hold a hearing on a bill to establish SOUL, a new permanency goal for older youth in foster care. Individuals w/ experience in care will share why SOUL is needed & how they developed the bill with government agencies & partners.

Ward 5 Weekly - November 7, 2025 this week's highlights: - DC Set to be 1st U.S. City with Local Child Tax Credit - Ward 5 Notices of Intent Closing for Comment - Today - Youth Mentor Info Session in Ward 5 - Tomorrow - Office of Planning DC2050 Workshop - November 15 - Crummell Community Center Meeting - November 17 - Ward 5 Thanksgiving Grocery Giveaway - November 20 - DPR Ward 5 Capital Projects Meeting - November 20 and more!

The latest Ward 5 Weekly Newsletter is available now! You can read at ward5.us/news, listen at ward5.us/newsletter, and catch up on previous episodes of the Ward 5 Wave Podcast at ward5.us/podcast.

The Washington Post: D.C. Set to Become First City in the U.S. to Implement Local Child Tax Credit "The child tax credit is the single most effective anti-poverty program this country has ever seen," said Council member Zachary Parker (D - Ward 5), who has spent years trying to bring the child tax credit to fruition. "The District is flush with cash and resources, and it's time we advance real soultions for working-class folks."

Ryan Vinh, a research analyst at the Center on Poverty and Social Policy at Columbia University, said the District could become a model for other localities. A recent report from the center estimated that cities that implemented a local child tax credit to supplement the federal version could reduce child poverty by 25 to 50 percent depending on how large the city’s investment. In D.C., one of the cities the report analyzed, researchers estimated that a child tax credit of $800 to $960 per child, depending on age, could double the impact of the federal credit and achieve the 25 percent reduction.

The tax credit legislation, sponsored by Parker, offers a maximum of $1,000 per child, depending on household income — a level that Vinh says he expects would have “far-reaching effects” in reducing child poverty. “These are not abstract policies,” Council member Janeese Lewis George (D-Ward 4) said while debating the bill on Tuesday. “They are rent payments. Grocery bills. Child care. And breathing room for parents who have been carrying too much for too long.”

Erica Williams, executive director of the DC Fiscal Policy Institute, argued that with child poverty rates increasing, evictions on the rise and a projected local recession because of the mass federal layoffs, the policies would be life-changing for many. “I think this is a moment where we need to dig deep,” she said, “and really think about how we keep our families and communities resilient.”

DC is set to become the first city in the U.S. to implement a local child tax credit. It stands to transform lives + reduce child poverty by 25%. When we lift families out of poverty, we see outcomes across their lives improve: from education, to health, to employment, and more. 👉🏾 wapo.st/3XaOyEK

Kept a promise to DCI students to come back for a Dragon TV interview about public service and what I love about Ward 5 and the District. It was a good time!

Join me in celebrating a huge victory for working-class families across the District: we secured the first-ever District Child Tax Credit and an acceleration of the Earned Income Tax Credit expansion. 🎉

Revenue for this amendment is made possible by decoupling our local tax policy from the federal government. These are tough times, and through sound policy, we can provide needed relief for everyday Washingtonians. Read the full amendment here: zacharyparkerward5.com/wp-content/u...

In addition to the District Child Tax Credit, the amendment will also provide immediate relief to working-class families through a scaled-up version of the EITC, and keep District seniors' retirement intact by making adjustments to our municipal bonds policy.

I'm dogged about alleviating poverty in the District for families and children. That's why I've championed the Child Tax Credit, shown to be the single most effective anti-poverty measure in the past 60+ years. Tomorrow, I'm moving an amendment alongside 9 of my colleagues to finally secure it.

Ward 5 Weekly - October 31, 2025 this week's highlights: - SNAP, WIC, and LIHEAP - Supporting DC Families - Ward 5 Thanksgiving Giveaway Sign-ups - Now Open - Crispus Attucks Park Fall Festival - Tomorrow - Leaf Collection Starts in Section A - November 3 - DHCD Ward 5 Housing Listening Session - November 3 - Office of Planning DC2050 Workshops - November 6 & 15 - Crummell Community Center Meeting - November 17 and more!

The latest Ward 5 Weekly Newsletter is available now! You can read at ward5.us/news and subscribe at ward5.us/newsletter. Happy Halloween! 👻 🎃 🧌

Brentwood/Brookland Manor Community Meeting. Thursday, October 30, 2025. 6:30 - 7:30 p.m. @ the Brentwood Rec Center (2311 14th St NE). Join Ward 5 Councilmember Zachary Parker and ANC 5C05 Commissioner Darlene Oliver for a community discussion about neighborhood concerns including public safety, trash issues, construction, and more. We will be joined by Empower DC, the Department of Public Works (DPW), and the Department of Energy and the Environment (DOEE). We have also invited representatives from the OSSE Bus Terminal, and Brookland Manor. Questions? Call 202-724-8028 or email ward5contact@dccouncil.gov.

Reminder about tonight's meeting! Hope to see Brentwood/Brookland Manor neighbors there as we discuss a number of community concerns.

⏰ October 30, 6:30 p.m.
📍 Brentwood Rec Center (2311 14th St NE)

If you actually live in DC you should submit testimony for this initiative. BCBS has tried to do copay or testing fees for regular PrEP testing.

The District has made progress driving down rates of HIV and AIDS, and we need to continue our efforts. I invite you to come testify in support of a bill I introduced earlier this year, the PrEP DC Act of 2025, at the Committee on Health's hearing this Thursday at 9:30 a.m. Sign up at ward5.us/prep.

Tomorrow! Reminder to register at ward5.us/publicsafetycall

The latest editions of the Ward 5 Weekly Newsletter and the Ward 5 Wave Podcast are available now! You can read at ward5.us/news, listen at ward5.us/podcast, and subscribe at ward5.us/newsletter.

While the District continues to see encouraging declines in crime, we know there is more work to do and that ongoing federal surge presents challenges. Join us on October 29 for the next Ward 5 Public Safety Call to get updates and ask questions. Register at ward5.us/publicsafetycall

Ward 5 Weekly - October 17, 2025 this week's highlights: - Juvenile Detention, Montana Triangle, and More... - Metro Red Line Closure Impacts in Ward 5 - This Weekend - Bladensburg Bus Garage Meeting - October 21 - RFK Redevelopment Community Meeting - October 22 - Youth Sports Business Internship - Apply by October 23 - Ward 5 Public Safety Call - October 29 - Brentwood Community Meeting - October 30 and more!

The latest edition of the Ward 5 Weekly newsletter is available now! You can read at ward5.us/news and subscribe at ward5.us/newsletter. You can also catch up on episodes of the Ward 5 Wave podcast at ward5.us/podcast.

Attorney General Schwalb Issues Guidance on Your Right to Protest in the District Of Columbia

Everyone has the constitutional right to protest, gather peacefully, and make their voices heard.

Today, we are releasing guidance to make clear what is and what is not permitted under federal and local laws for protests in the nation's capital.

Know your rights, DC:

Under pressure to curb crime, D.C. Council examines school absences The D.C. Council is considering a bill to address gaps in the city’s truancy referral system.

The CARE for Youth Plan includes a bill addressing absenteeism and truancy in the District. Yesterday's hearing in the Committee of the Whole on absenteeism and today's hearing in the Committee on Youth Affairs brings these issues to the fore. See coverage from @washingtonpost.com - wapo.st/4heWRJ1