School closures, emergency services furloughs, and disruptions of metro service are among the crises D.C. officials are now warning of if this temporary government funding measure passes, a city council member told ABC News.

“It would be devastating,” Zachary Parker, Ward 5 Councilmember, said. “It would mean cuts to Metro that services the entire DMV region. It means closing and shuttering schools and programs. It means having to furlough police officers at a time where we’re continuing to drive down violent crime in the district.”

The stopgap funding measure House Republicans passed and the Senate will take up Friday doesn’t just avert a shutdown, it strips Washington, D.C., of $1 billion.

A US flag flies near the dome of the US Capitol in Washington, DC, February 25, 2025.

Saul Loeb/AFP via Getty Images

Now, D.C. leaders are in the awkward political position of advocating for a government shutdown to protect many of the city’s vital services.

“I’m advocating for Senate Democrats to meet this moment. If that means a shutdown, then that is what we are asking them to do,” Parker said.

–ABC News’ Jay O’Brien, Beatrice Peaterson