Over the past week, Casey Trees has been showing up at DC budget hearings to make the case for trees, parks, environmental education, and other programs that keep our city green and resilient. From DOEE to DPR to DDOT, and culminating in DC’s Green Budget Day rally, we’ve been speaking up for the funding that helps care for our tree canopy, supports environmental education, and sustains neighborhood green spaces.
We’ve urged the DC Council to protect core environmental programs, restore key cuts, and invest in the public and community benefits that come from a healthier tree canopy and better-maintained green spaces. Here’s a snapshot of some of our advocacy efforts.
Restoring Funding for Environmental Education and Green Infrastructure
Last Friday, Casey Trees’ Executive Director Andrew Schichtel testified before the DC Council’s Committee on Transportation and the Environment at the Department of Energy & Environment budget hearing. He flagged the proposed 28% cut to DOEE and the risk that important federal dollars could go unused without local matching funds. Casey Trees asked Council to restore funding for Nature Near Schools, park maintenance grants, invasive plant management, and green infrastructure maintenance so the District can keep supporting climate resilience, clean water, and green jobs.
You can read Andrew’s full testimony here. Additionally, you can advocate for DC’s environmental education programs by sending a letter to your DC Councilmember.
Preserving Funding for DC’s Green Spaces
Earlier in the week, Casey Trees’ Director of Policy & Land Conservation Kelly Collins Choi testified on April 27 before the Committee on Facilities at the Department of Parks and Recreation budget hearing. She talked about Casey Trees’ long partnership with DPR, including planting more than 6,000 trees on DPR sites and supporting environmental education and volunteer stewardship. Her testimony called on Council to restore funding for natural area planning and maintenance, fix the steep FY27 cut to the Small Parks capital budget, and expand public-private partnerships that help communities care for neighborhood green spaces.
You can read Kelly’s full testimony here.
Protecting Our Tree Canopy
Also on April 27, Casey Trees Chief Operating Officer Robert Shaut testified before the Committee on Transportation and Environment at the Department of Transportation budget hearing. He focused on the Tree Fund and urged Council to keep it non-lapsing so the money collected from tree removal fees goes back into planting and caring for trees. He also highlighted Casey Trees’ work with DDOT on the Riversmart Homes program and the DC State Tree Nursery, and stressed that the Tree Fund is essential for growing and protecting DC’s canopy.
You can read Rob’s full testimony here.
DC’s Green Budget Day of Action
Today, Casey Trees joined partners and advocates for the Green Budget Day of Action to help persuade the DC Council to restore critical funding for the District’s green future. Alongside organizations such as the Sierra Club, DC Environmental Network, Nature Forward, Anacostia Riverkeeper, Potomac Riverkeeper, and many other community-based groups and environmental advocates, we called attention to proposed FY budget cuts that would weaken our city’s climate resilience and sustainable future. Planned budget cuts affect maintenance of parks and natural areas, affordable energy programs, green infrastructure projects, clean river programs, and environmental education programs across the city.
The public response underscored that these investments are not optional extras—they are essential to healthier neighborhoods, cooler streets, and long-term resilience in DC. We were encouraged by the presence of Ward 6 Councilmember Charles Allen and Ward 7 Councilmember Wendell Felder, who both spoke about the impact of these budget cuts on their constituents and on the District. By showing up together, partners made a clear case that the budget should protect the programs that better prepare the District’s communities for heat and climate change.
