Tom Howell Jr.
Articles by Tom Howell Jr.
D.C. budget vote scheduled for Tuesday
The long, tortured path toward compensating city workers for four furlough days will get a little longer, as the D.C. Council looks ahead to fiscal 2013 instead of taking up the issue on Tuesday during its first round of voting on the upcoming year's budget. Published May 14, 2012
D.C. Council explores avenues for reducing traffic fines
D.C. Council members are actively looking at ways to reduce traffic fines in light of Mayor Vincent C. Gray's recent plan to greatly increase the use of automated enforcement on the city's streets. Published May 13, 2012
D.C. woman connected to Thomas scheme pleads guilty
A 46-year-old woman linked to former council member Harry Thomas Jr.'s scheme to steal public funds pleaded guilty on Friday to failing to report income on her tax return in 2010, including a "fee" she obtained for surreptitiously redirecting more than $100,000 in grant funds to cover the costs of an inaugural ball in January 2009. Published May 11, 2012
Graham not sold on compromise over bar hours
D.C. Council member Jim Graham is not abandoning his proposal to increase the excise tax on alcohol sales in lieu of Mayor Vincent C. Gray's money-raising plan to expand bar hours, despite the appeal of a compromise plan that could render the tax moot and keep the booze flowing until 4 a.m. on holidays instead of year-round. Published May 10, 2012
D.C. Council considers bar hours trade-off
The D.C. Council is considering a budget compromise that allows bars to stay open until 4 a.m. on all federal and D.C. holidays, some specified holiday weekends and the week of the presidential inauguration in lieu of Mayor Vincent C. Gray's plan to keep taps flowing for an extra hour every night of the year. Published May 9, 2012
Woman with Thomas connection charged with filing false tax return
A woman connected to former council member Harry Thomas Jr.'s scheme to steal $350,000 in public funds from the city has been charged with filing a false tax return in 2010, according to federal court records. Published May 9, 2012
D.C. bill would cut illegal alien holding time
A D.C. Council committee Tuesday advanced a bill that cuts in half the amount of time U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement has to pick up illegal immigrants placed on a civil detainer. Published May 8, 2012
Early voting to replace Thomas shows seniors’ importance
A heavy slate of candidates hoping to replace former D.C. Council member Harry Thomas Jr. is courting a bloc of "supervoters" who could decide the winner - senior citizens. Published May 7, 2012
Rejected marijuana applicants take to the courts
Unsuccessful applicants to the District's medical marijuana program are asking the courts to force the reconsideration of their submissions, claiming they were rejected by a review panel despite meeting or exceeding stated criteria. Published May 6, 2012
Catania finds $20M to restore D.C. healthcare funding
D.C. Council member David A. Catania announced his Committee on Health has found $20 million to restore hospital and specialty funding to about 20,000 city residents — almost all of them immigrants — who are not eligible for Medicaid. Published May 3, 2012
Former D.C. Council member Thomas sentenced to 38 months in prison
Former D.C. Council member Harry Thomas Jr. was sentenced Thursday to 38 months in prison for stealing more than $350,000 in public funds. Published May 3, 2012
D.C. Council panel refuses to extend bar hours
A D.C. Council committee on Wednesday delivered a blow to Mayor Vincent C. Gray's plan to raise $3.2 million in the coming year by allowing bars to stay open for an additional hour. Published May 2, 2012
D.C. Council deadlocks on amendment to budget
The D.C. Council on Tuesday failed to pass a midyear spending plan that would have compensated city workers for four furlough days in 2011 after it deadlocked on a patchwork of funding priorities and whether it made sense to put the District's payroll over its other responsibilities. Published May 1, 2012
Evans bill would require ‘reasonable notice’ of D.C. protests
D.C. Council member Jack Evans introduced a bill on Tuesday that would require protesters to provide the city "reasonable notice" of a planned demonstration. Published May 1, 2012
Graham proposes alcohol tax hike
D.C. Council member Jim Graham on Monday proposed an increase to the District's alcohol excise tax that translates to 6 cents more per drink at bars and liquor stores - a bid to close the city's budget gap without green-lighting Mayor Vincent C. Gray's plan to keep taverns open an extra hour. Published April 30, 2012
Spending plan includes furlough repayments, bonds-tax repeal
The D.C. Council on Tuesday will consider a $68.7 million spending plan for the rest of the fiscal year that repays city workers for furlough days they took in 2011 and repeals a controversial and confusing tax on interest earned from out-of-state bonds, council Chairman Kwame R. Brown said. Published April 30, 2012
46-month sentence sought for former D.C. Council member
Federal prosecutors will ask a U.S. District Court judge to sentence former D.C. Council member Harry Thomas Jr. to nearly four years in prison for stealing from the city while he "publicly portrayed himself as a champion of underprivileged children" and eroded the city government's reputation in the process, according to court papers filed Friday. Published April 27, 2012
Report: Others aided Thomas’ theft from trust
D.C. Council member Jim Graham is using his oversight powers to launch a formal investigation into whether staff at a public-private nonprofit "and perhaps others" paved the way for former city lawmaker Harry Thomas Jr. to pocket more than $350,000 in city funds intended for youth sports programs. Published April 27, 2012
Barry won’t apologize for comments on Asians, Filipino nurses
D.C. Council member Marion Barry struck an unyielding tone in defending himself Thursday against criticism over his contentious remarks about Asian-owned shops and the number of Filipino nurses in the District — comments that prompted one man to say he had rooted for the mayor-for-life for years, only to have his heart broken. Published April 26, 2012
Norton urges Hatch Act change
The District's nonvoting member of Congress is hoping to divorce the city from aspects of a law that limits federal employees' political activities as the city gains traction in efforts to increase the distance between local affairs and controlling hands on Capitol Hill. Published April 25, 2012
