A bureaucratic mess has left thousands of dollars generated by higher parking meter fees idling in District coffers rather than with a slate of programs that benefit low-income city residents, as the D.C. Council directed.

The council in December raised all $1-per-hour meters to $2, and all other meters by 25 cents. The emergency bill directed Mayor Adrian Fenty to route the additional revenue, an estimated $5 million in fiscal 2009, to three housing assistance programs and Temporary Assistance for Needy Families — plus $1 million for the O Street Market project in Shaw.