The mission of Debt Service administration is to finance the District’s capital and cash flow needs, minimize the costs associated with such financing, exercise fiscally responsible debt management practices, and make timely payments of all debt services.

Summary of Services

Timely debt service payments are necessary to satisfy the District's commitments to its investors (bondholders) and maintain a good credit standing in the financial marketplace. Under the District of Columbia Home Rule Act, the District may issue debt to finance capital projects or seasonal cash needs, subject to certain limitations. Specifically, no long-term debt may be issued that would cause total debt service on all tax-supported debt to exceed 12 percent of total general fund expenditures in any year during the 6-year capital plan period. No short-term debt may be issued in an amount that would cause total outstanding short-term debt to exceed 20 percent of the projected revenue of the fiscal year in which the debt is issued. Short-term debt must be repaid by the end of the fiscal year in which it is issued. The District’s total outstanding tax-supported long-term debt as of January 1, 2015 was $9.19 billion. The District issued $400 million of short-term debt in FY 2015, which will be repaid by September 30, 2015. Appropriations are budgeted from Local funds in amounts sufficient to meet the required payments for the various types of debt service.