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ch n Wednesday, August 22, 2012 T he Current
The Northwest
Current
Davis Kennedy/Publisher & Editor Chris Kain/Managing Editor
Taxing questions
We’re pleased that Mayor Vincent Gray has appointed former Mayor Anthony Williams to chair the city’s reconstituted Tax Revision Commission, which held its first meeting this month. The group will study possible tax code changes that could increase the District’s tax revenues by lowering certain rates and thus encouraging businesses and individuals to move to D.C. It’s clear that some firms and people are willing to move for tax reasons. For instance, the Washington Business Journal recently reported that Evolution Finance Inc., a 16-employee high-tech firm based in Arlington, is moving to D.C. to take advantage of a five-year corporate franchise tax waiver for firms in “High Technology Development Zones.” But anecdotal examples are not sufficient bases for changing our tax rules, and therefore the commission’s research will be invaluable. One issue the commission must assess is Mayor Gray’s proposal to offer tax advantages to high-tech companies that locate anywhere in the city, not just in designated zones. While the move could entice more companies like Evolution Finance, the result could be a net loss for the District, so a careful look is crucial. The mayor has also asked the commission to assess whether lowering commercial property taxes to Maryland or Virginia levels could entice firms to move here. Another possibility might be offering lower rates just in areas of high unemployment. He also asked whether the city could legally tax unincorporated businesses operating in D.C. but owned by suburbanites, as well as whether the city could legally give higher wages to city employees who live in the District and whether it would be beneficial to do so. These and a host of other questions need serious study. Tales of single successes — such as Evolution Finance’s move — do not mean that larger tax incentives are worth the effort. But they do suggest the worth of further investigation.
Girls for the gold
It’s been widely reported that the United States sent more women than men to the Olympics this summer, earning the American squad the early nickname “Team Title IX.” And when the games wrapped up this month, only two countries had won as many gold medals as the 29 taken by U.S. women, according to bleacherreport.com. With the games and their notable gender stats still in our rear-view mirrors — and the school year on the near horizon — now seems a good time to consider the state of girls’ sports in D.C. As in much of the country, D.C. is not perfect in its compliance with the U.S. law prohibiting sex discrimination by any school or university that receives federal funds. The Washington Post reported this past spring that during the 2010-2011 school year, girls made up only 39 percent of high school athletic participants in the D.C. Public Schools system, yet they comprised 51 percent of enrollment. The National Women’s Law Center has been looking into the issue, posting notices on various listservs earlier this year seeking participants for a survey on girls playing D.C. Public Schools sports. We’re eager to learn what the organization finds. As council members noted at a 2010 hearing on Title IX observance, sports translate to more than just improved coordination and better health — which are superior achievements in themselves. Research also shows that participation leads to higher graduation and college acceptance rates, as well as lower truancy, dropout, drug use and pregnancy numbers. We’re interested to hear an update on the extent to which girls in D.C. Public Schools participate in sports today. The school system launched a female flag football program in the spring to increase such participation, according to The Post, which wrote that six schools were fielding teams, with a total of nearly 70 girls playing. This is a great move, but we hope there’s more to come. Our local young women deserve nothing less.
Power, parking and speeding …
I
f you’re not already exhausted from complaining about Pepco or, on an entirely different subject, parking and parking tickets in Washington, we have a few outlets where you can complain some more. Mayor Vincent Gray recently created a task force on Pepco, its power outages and the possibility of putting more power lines underground. It will hold its first meeting Thursday. Starting later this month, the D.C. Department of Transportation will hold several public hearings on what should and could be done about parking on city streets. And there is also a task force working on the effectiveness and fairness of speed cameras. The Pepco task force will meet Thursday at 1 p.m. in the John A. Wilson Building. Organizers had asked the public to sign up by Monday if they wanted to speak, but registration is still open. Residents may also have a chance to comment without advance registration if time permits. We’re not sure the task force is expecting many members of the public, because the ground-floor room G9 is not very big. But the task force is. City Administrator Allen Lew, who, if memory serves, hates meetings that last more than a few minutes, is co-chair of the Mayor’s Task Force of Power Line Undergrounding. The other co-chair is none other than Joseph Rigby, chair of Pepco’s holding company. The mayor also appointed Matt Frumin of Ward 3 and Herb Harris of Ward 7 to be citizen members of the task force, because a lot of power outages occur in those two wards. Other government members are drawn from the mayor’s cabinet, along with Public Service Commission chair Betty Ann Kane and People’s Counsel Sandra Mattavous-Frye. Ward 7 D.C. Council member Yvette Alexander is also serving, even though her Committee on Public Services and Consumer Affairs is the very committee that’s supposed to monitor such activities. Chief Financial Officer Natwar Gandhi also is a member, but he, too, has a lot more to do than attend task force meetings. Two other utility executives round out the membership. One of them is Donna Rattley-Washington, a Comcast vice president in charge of government and regulatory affairs. The other is Karen Campbell, a Verizon vice president for government affairs. And what will all these public, private and government officials do on their task force? According to Gray, the group “will finally develop long-term solutions to these all-too-frequent dis-
ruptions.” It was also told to gather information “to develop plans that will, over time, greatly reduce the impacts of severe weather on our power grid.” Some might wonder if that isn’t the routine job of the Public Service Commission and all of the utility companies, but we digress. The task force has until Jan. 31 to report its findings. ■ Parking think tanks? Well, that’s what the Transportation Department is calling its planned series of public meetings on street parking issues in Washington. The first will be held on Tuesday, Aug. 28, from 2 to 4 p.m. at One Judiciary Square. The Transportation Department says its “series of community conversations” could guide a citywide parking plan, something that hasn’t been updated since the department itself was formed 10 years ago. The transportation agency wants to know how it can strike a better balance of parking needs “of everyone — employees, residents, and visitors,” all of whom compete daily for space. If you can’t make the first meeting, the schedule for other sessions will be available at ddot.dc.gov. Again, like the task force on power lines, it seems like figuring out how to address routine parking needs might be a normal part of the department’s mission. But it never hurts to solicit public comment, as long as someone listens to it. ■ Speed camera review. It is too early to know what conclusions may be reached by either the parking or Pepco group. But another task force — this one on city speed cameras — is expected to come out swinging just after Labor Day. Put together by Ward 6 Council member Tommy Wells, this citizen panel has been studying the city’s growing use of speed cameras and the fines associated with them. Fines are now as high as $250. Some motorists complain that there’s not enough warning that cameras are present. (Of course, if you’re not speeding, it’s not an issue where the cameras are.) Wells says he’s looking for a variety of things, including “immediate adjustments to certain automated enforcement fines.” Many people believe the city is using cameras to rake in money, not improve safety. Wells says he wants any camera revenue to go solely to road-safety activities. On Monday, Wells was just returning from a brief vacation. He told us he hopes to have legislation ready to go when the council holds its first meeting in mid-September. If that happens, it’ll be a bright feather in Wells’ political cap that might get some attention should he wind up in a race for mayor. Tom Sherwood, a Southwest resident, is a political reporter for News 4.
TOM SHERWOOD’s
Notebook
Letters to the Editor Klingle trail would waste tax money
In the Aug. 15 article “Court dismisses Klingle Road lawsuit,” The Current notes that the Federal Highway Administration and D.C. Department of Transportation’s environmental assessment found no significant impact for building a bike trail. I’m not surprised; years earlier, the environmental assessment to repair Klingle Road to motor vehicles also found no significant impact. But the real issue here is money. The Sierra Club’s website states that Transportation Department director Terry
Bellamy, in a meeting with D.C. Council member Mary Cheh and club representatives, said that this so-called “bike trail” will cost $12 million. Of course, this includes work that is required to sustain the utilities and repair the infrastructure — work that is required whether a road or trail is built. But no matter how you slice it, or how you dice it, at the end of the day if the city spends $12 million in tax money and ends up with a trail, then that is the cost of the trail. The real solution here is to build both a road and a trail that everyone can use. Otherwise, the city would be foolishly spending $12 million on a four-block trail. Currently, there is a magnificent trail maintained by the Tregaron Conservancy alongside
the closed portion of Klingle. Isn’t that enough? Laurie Collins Cleveland Park
D.C. summers make Olympics unwise
Whoa! [“Olympic fever ... 2024?” Tom Sherwood’s Notebook, Aug. 8.] This has been the hottest summer on record in this area, with more violent storms than I care to contemplate. Scientists agree our summers are only going to get warmer in the years ahead and storms more frequent and violent. Is this the kind of climate to which we want to subject the world’s best athletes? I say, no. Janet Trowbridge Bohlen Spring Valley