Photo by BobbyTechnology

>> In the wake of last week’s tragic mass killing at a school in Newtown, Conn., more police will patrol area schools today, reports WTOP. Counselors will also be on hand in Montgomery County schools, and students and staff at Prince George’s County schools will observe a moment of silence at 10 a.m. for the 28 children and adults killed.

>> Mayor Vince Gray is opposed to a D.C. Council bill that would add 30 cents per month to residential water bills to help create a fund that would cover damages from sewer backups in homes, writes the Examiner. The council passed the bill two weeks ago in response to repeated floods in Bloomingdale and Ledroit Park, but Gray says it sets a bad precedent and that utilities should only be held responsible for accidents that their actions directly caused.

>> It cost $700,000 to plan for and implement and only a few hours for the D.C. Council to bring to a screeching halt. We’re of course talking about a proposed new red-top handicapped parking meter program devised by the D.C. Department of Transportation and backed by some D.C. legislators that would have set aside 10 percent of all on-street spots for handicapped drivers while charging them for the parking. The Examiner writes that the council narrowly rejected the proposal two weeks ago, with some legislators saying they were concerned with the change from free to paid on-street parking. Advocates of the red-top meters said that they would help crack down on fraudulent used of handicapped placards.

Briefly Noted: Lots left for the D.C. Council to vote on at last session of year … Three D.C. agency heads have drivers … MoCo, Fairfax considering pushing back high school start times … As usual, presidential inauguration won’t be cheap … Former D.C. cheerleading coach must register as sex offender … Fomer Gray aide tied to $653,000 shadow campaign due in court today.

This Day in DCist: On this day in 2010 Mayor-elect Gray announced that he was keeping various Fenty appointees and we wrote about the day in the life of a White House protester (who also happened to be the mother of one of our contributors).