WMATA Joint Development Properties Tax Abatement Act: Board of Trade Supports Targeted Tool to Unlock Growth
About This Letter:
The Greater Washington Board of Trade submitted a letter of support for Subtitle E, the WMATA Joint Development Properties Tax Abatement Act of 2026, in the Fiscal Year 2027 Budget Support Act. The letter urges the D.C. Council to preserve the proposal as a practical tool to support housing production, neighborhood activity, ridership, and future tax base growth around Metro-owned properties.
Submitted Letter:
May 22, 2026
The Honorable Phil Mendelson
Chairman, Council of the District of Columbia
John A. Wilson Building
1350 Pennsylvania Avenue NW
Washington, DC 20004
Dear Chairman Mendelson:
On behalf of the Greater Washington Board of Trade, I am writing to express our support for Subtitle E, the WMATA Joint Development Properties Tax Abatement Act of 2026, in the Fiscal Year 2027 Budget Support Act.
The District is in a moment that calls for a clear focus on growth and long-term fiscal strength. Metro is central to that work, and the land around Metro stations should be working harder for the city. These sites are among the District’s strongest opportunities to support housing production, neighborhood activity, ridership, and future tax base growth.
This proposal is a practical tool to help unlock that opportunity.
The Board of Trade has consistently supported efforts that help WMATA improve service, control costs, increase ridership, and identify new revenue opportunities. Making better use of Metro-owned property advances that same goal and gives the District another way to turn existing public assets into broader economic value.
This proposal also responds to the market reality facing many development projects today. If the District wants more housing and stronger activity around Metro stations, it needs tools that help viable projects move forward when current conditions make them difficult to deliver. That is exactly the kind of targeted approach the District should preserve.
We recognize that every fiscal decision requires careful judgment. In this case, preserving the subtitle would support the District’s housing and economic development goals while advancing the same revenue diversification and asset activation the region has been asking WMATA to pursue.
For these reasons, we respectfully encourage you to support Subtitle E and keep the WMATA Joint Development Properties Tax Abatement Act of 2026 in the Budget Support Act.
Sincerely,
Jack McDougle
President & CEO
Greater Washington Board of Trade
About the Board of Trade
The Greater Washington Board of Trade, founded in 1889, is the region’s premier non-partisan business organization representing industry, nonprofits, universities, and government agencies. The Board of Trade addresses complex and always-evolving business concerns that stretch across the District of Columbia, suburban Maryland, and Northern Virginia, with a priority focus on inclusive economic growth, improving the business climate, and enhancing the region’s economic competitiveness.
Additional Advocacy Statements and Testimonies
WMATA Funding: Board of Trade Urges D.C. to Protect Metro Investment
Become a member today
We need your voice at the table to make Greater Washington a place where everyone can succeed
