The Office of the Chief Financial Officer today announced that it will put forward a proposal to award the contract to operate the D.C. Lottery to Intralot, an international gaming management company. The contract is for an initial five-year period, and must be approved by the D.C. Council. more ›

A day after the Washington Post put a number as high as $2.46 million on the amount of money that was stolen from the Office of Tax and Revenue in 1999, the last year that current D.C. Chief Financial Officer Natwar Gandhi was the head of the office, at least two D.C. Council members are starting to test the waters by suggesting that Gandhi ought to resign. At-large member Kwame Brown and Ward 1 Council... more ›

Add one more major D.C. government corruption scandal to the list. NBC4 is reporting that the U.S. Attorney's Office in Washington is set to announce a major public corruption investigation involving District city workers and the theft of about $16 million in property tax money. The Washington Post has the details on the indictments, which accuse two D.C. Office of Tax and Revenue employees -- Harriette Walters and Diane Gustus -- of fabricating tax refund... more ›

One of those longstanding D.C. arguments may be finally coming to a resolution, and you can feel the excitement in the air this morning, Washington. No, it's not the handgun ban, or taxicab meters, or anything to do with voting rights -- but there sure are a lot of longstanding arguments in this town, now that we mention it. Rather, metro riders should keep their eyes peeled for two railcars that will soon be sporting... more ›

Batten down the hatches, Washington. Proving that no good spell of weather goes unpunished, we've now got some major storms headed our way. Two separate storm lines, to be precise, are barreling down on the metro area as we speak, the first having just begun, and the second, more powerful system, expected between noon and 5 p.m. With winds at 30 mph, we'd suggest upgrading your umbrella to something more than cheap and crappy. District... more ›

Well, the swim may have been cancelled due to the nastiness in the Potomac River, but otherwise the inaugural Nation's Triathlon went off without a hitch. Well, spare the road closures that snared Saturday morning traffic by the National Mall, that is. And what they say is true -- Adrian Fenty really does run triathlons, and he's good. Gandhi to Keep Job: Phew! Natwar Gandhi, the District's Chief Financial Officer, must be breathing a... more ›

Right around now, most District households should have their handy 2006 Voters Guide, the booklet running through the details of the upcoming September 12 primary and featuring short vignettes on all the candidates on the ballot. More importantly, though, the booklets each have a specific notation listing a precinct number that track to the polling place each registered voter is to visit to cast their ballot. Well, kind of. It seems that the company contracted... more ›

You can just about make out the strains of the Carpenters' classic tune "We've Only Just Begun" humming in the air down around the new stadium development in S.E. these days. Wait, no, that song is about falling in love. Whoops. I think we meant something more like "I Hate You" by Slayer. It's so easy to get those two mixed up. Yesterday, at its last meeting before taking their summer recess, the D.C. City... more ›

It’s Tuesday. No, it doesn’t have the mid-week "hump” status of Wednesday, nor does it have the festive vibe of a Friday, but it’s Tuesday, and we love it all the same. With a study claiming that pervasive American melancholy is a myth and today shaping up to be a mostly sunny day with a high of 47 degrees, things aren’t so bad. more ›

Yesterday we explored the contentious issue of double-parking around area churches on Sundays. Many commenters echoed a basic question we asked: Since double-parking is against the law, why don't police officers crack down on it, churchgoer or otherwise? Today the Washington Times has provided us with an answer. Straight from the mouth of Mary Myers, a spokeswoman for the Department of Public Works, which is charged with enforcing District parking regulations: I think overall there... more ›

The region's first snow hit yesterday, and, as expected, the morning news was chock full of weather analyses and human interest reports on snowmen and troubled commutes. We suppose it is big news, and we should expect that local newscasters will wax poetic about the "winter wonderland." Of course, the novelty of snow on the ground may soon fade, with residents realizing that we still have four months of this weather remaining. And as much... more ›

D.C. Mayor Anthony Williams might have wanted to take an easy Sunday away from the grind of managing a city of 570,000. He might have woken late, sat down to a hearty breakfast, sipped coffee, and flipped through the morning papers while glancing at the Sunday morning talk shows. But yesterday's Sunday routine was probably rudely interrupted by the Post, whose front-page, above-the-fold story titled "District Dodges Spending Laws: Companies Snare Contracts With Connections, not... more ›

In the Washington Capitals first game in 550 days, the city's hockey team defeated the Columbus Blue Jackets before a near capacity crowd long thirsting for the team's return. DCist can't help but be excited for this turn of events -- a full season gone, we finally have one more thing to carry our attention through the soon-to-come winter months. Mayor Offers Barry Support: Upon learning that former mayor and current Ward 8 Council-member Marion... more ›

In what may come to be known as one of the city's most persistent urban headaches, plans for a 2008 opening of a new stadium for the Washington Nationals may well be delayed. According to an article published Sunday in the W. Times, bidders for the team have accepted that the various obstacles city officials have to overcome may doom the Nationals to playing at RFK Stadium until 2009, possibly even 2010. According to one... more ›

Thursdays seem to bring out the populist in many D.C. politicians, and heading into a sure-to-be contested 2005-2006 mayoral race, one can only think that it serves to shore up a candidate's credentials and their base of support. It worked for Juan and Eva Peron, at left, who ruled over Argentina from 1946-1955 with high levels of support from the country's poorest, so why not here? more ›

Today will be mostly cloudy with a 30 percent chance of rain, with highs in the lower 60s. Matthew Bradley posted this photo of historian Howard Zinn to DCist photos yesterday. Also, it's only one more day before DCist celebrates Cinco de Mayo at Chief Ike's! Same-sex Couples Prohibited from Filing Joint Taxes: D.C.'s Chief Financial Officer Natwar Gandhi ruled yesterday gay couples could not file taxes jointly in D.C., even if they were... more ›

Good morning Washington. Normally DCist won't use our platform to ask you for help in a personal matter. But we must turn to you and say: "Help, our keg was stolen last night!" To celebrate good weather, 10+ DCists, surrogates and friends gathered at the Columbia Heights home of one of our contributors to eat, drink and plot how to introduce blogging to Loudoun County. And when we were all inside (we let our guard... more ›

Do you have any unclaimed property? The District has released its list of unclaimed property it holds, including "$14.5 million in cash and stock that needs to be returned to its rightful owners." more ›

Today will be mostly sunny blustery and cold with highs around 30. This photo of Lafayette Park was taken by Thomas Michael Corcoran. D.C. Government: Rolling in Dough: D.C. Chief Financial Officer Natwar M. Gandhi announced yesterday that the D.C. government had a surplus of $318 million in 2004 and has amassed $1.2 billion in savings. After withholding most to accommodate for expected increases in healthcare for city employees and other expenses, Gandhi is... more ›