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District Of Columbia Council Bill B25-0112

District Of Columbia 2023-2024 Regular Session

District Of Columbia Council Bill B25-0112 Compare Versions

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11 ____________________________ _______________________________ 1
22 Councilmember Charles Allen Councilmember Brooke Pinto 2
33 3
44 4
55 5
66 _______________________________ _______________________________ 6
77 Councilmember Robert White, Jr. Councilmember Christina Henderson 7
88 8
99 9
1010 10
1111 _______________________________ _______________________________ 11
1212 Councilmember Matthew Frumin Councilmember Vincent C. Gray 12
1313 13
1414 14
1515 15
1616 _______________________________ _______________________________ 16
1717 Councilmember Brianne K. Nadeau Janeese Lewis George 17
1818 18
1919 AN ACT 19
2020 20
2121 ____________ 21
2222 22
2323 IN THE COUNCIL OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA 23
2424 24
2525 ________________________ 25
2626 26
2727 To set requirements for nutrient-dense food served in correctional facilities, to require the 27
2828 Department of Corrections to adopt the Good Food Purchasing Program, to strengthen oversight 28
2929 of food and nutrition in correctional facilities, and to establish a task force to explore and 29
3030 propose additional long-term improvements. 30
3131 31
3232 BE IT ENACTED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA, That this 32
3333 act may be cited as the “Food Regulation Ensures Safety and Hospitality Specialty Training Aids 33
3434 Re-entry Transition and Success (FRESH STARTS) Act of 2023”. 34
3535 Sec. 2. Definitions. 35
3636 For the purposes of this act, the term: 36
3737 (a) “Correctional facilities” means the Central Detention Facility, Correctional 37
3838 Treatment Facility, Central Cell Block, and any other facilities operated by or contracted on 38
3939 behalf of the Department of Corrections to house incarcerated individuals. 39 (b) “Director” means the Director of the Department of Corrections. 40
4040 (c) “DOC” means the Department of Corrections. 41
4141 (d) “DOC detainees” means individuals who are incarcerated in the Central 42
4242 Detention Facility, Correctional Treatment Facility, and any other facilities operated by the 43
4343 Department of Corrections to house incarcerated individuals. 44
4444 (e) "Good Food Purchasing Program's core values" (“GFPP’s core values”) means 45
4545 the following 5 core values established by the Center for Good Food Purchasing for its Good 46
4646 Food Purchasing Program: 47
4747 (1) Local economies; 48
4848 (2) Nutrition; 49
4949 (3) Valued workforce; 50
5050 (4) Environmental sustainability; and 51
5151 (5) Animal welfare. 52
5252 (f) “Nutrient-dense foods” means foods that fulfill recommended nutritional 53
5353 standards identified by the USDA’s Dietary Guidelines for Americans as important components 54
5454 of a healthy dietary pattern, including: 55
5555 (1) At least two servings of dark green vegetables per week, at least one of 56
5656 which is served raw; 57
5757 (2) At least three servings of red and orange vegetables per week, at least 58
5858 one of which is served raw; and 59
5959 (3) At least one serving of raw fruit per day. 60
6060 (g) “Task Force” means the Healthy Food in DC Correctional Facilities Task 61
6161 Force established pursuant to this Title. 62 Sec. 3. Nutrition Goals and Standards. 63
6262 (a) Starting January 1, 2024, DOC shall provide all DOC detainees with daily 64
6363 meals that meet or exceed the federal nutritional standards set forth in the most recent edition of 65
6464 the U.S. Department of Agriculture and U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Dietary 66
6565 Guidelines for Americans, established pursuant to the 1990 National Nutrition Monitoring and 67
6666 Related Research Act, approved October 22, 1990 (104 Stat. 1034, 7 U.S.C. § 5341 et seq.), 68
6767 except: 69
6868 (1) Where the Task Force develops and establishes independent nutritional 70
6969 guidelines that meet or exceed the USDA’s Dietary Guidelines for Americans, DOC shall 71
7070 provide meals in compliance with those Task Force standards; and 72
7171 (2) Notwithstanding any general nutritional standards, DOC detainees who 73
7272 have dietary restrictions or requirements based on health or medical need or religious or cultural 74
7373 belief shall receive meals in compliance with such needs or beliefs. 75
7474 (b) Correctional facilities shall: 76
7575 (1) Serve nutritious and well-balanced meals, in compliance with 77
7676 established nutritional standards, to DOC detainees; and 78
7777 (2) Serve a plant-based food option as the main course to DOC detainees 79
7878 who request a plant-based diet for medical, health, religious, or ethical reasons. 80
7979 (c) DOC is strongly encouraged to procure food for DOC detainees in a manner 81
8080 consistent with the GFPP's core values. 82
8181 (d) Starting January 1, 2024, the Fresh Foods Fund shall be used to purchase 83
8282 nutrient-dense foods to supplement existing funding for food for DOC detainees. 84
8383 Sec. 4. Fresh Foods Fund. 85 (a) There is established as a nonlapsing fund the Fresh Foods Fund (“Fund”), 86
8484 which shall be used solely as provided in subsection (c) of this section and administered by the 87
8585 DOC. The Fund shall be funded by annual appropriations, which shall be deposited into the 88
8686 Fund. 89
8787 (b) All funds deposited into the Fund, and any interest earned on those funds, 90
8888 shall not revert to the unrestricted fund balance of the General Fund of the District of Columbia 91
8989 at the end of a fiscal year, or at any other time, but shall be continually available for the uses and 92
9090 purposes set forth in subsection (c) of this section without regard to fiscal year limitation, subject 93
9191 to authorization by Congress. 94
9292 (c) The Fund shall be used to purchase nutrient-dense foods to supplement any 95
9393 existing contracts for food in correctional facilities to meet nutritional standards, as required in 96
9494 Section 3 of this title, through food procurement aligned with the GFPP’s core values, and may 97
9595 be used to provide monthly grants to indigent detainees for the purchase of commissary food 98
9696 items. 99
9797 Sec. 5. Good Food Purchasing Program. 100
9898 (a) Before December 31, 2023, DOC shall conduct a Good Food Purchasing 101
9999 Program ("GFPP") baseline assessment to determine how DOC can better meet the GFPP core 102
100100 values. 103
101101 (b) DOC shall use findings from the assessment required under subsection (a) of 104
102102 this section to increase food procurement consistent with the GFPP's core values. 105
103103 (c) Before December 31, 2024, and annually thereafter, DOC shall complete a 106
104104 follow-up assessment to demonstrate progress toward the GFPP core values. 107 (d) The Mayor shall develop and publish standards, known as the Good Food 108
105105 Purchasing Policy and consistent with GFPP core values, that the DOC shall use in making 109
106106 decisions on the award of grants and contracts for operations and management of the DOC food 110
107107 service program. 111
108108 (e) After the effective date of this Act, all contracts for operation and management 112
109109 of the DOC food service program shall: 113
110110 (1) Be procured in accordance with the Procurement Practices Reform Act 114
111111 of 2010, effective April 8, 2011 (D.C. Law 18 371; D.C. Official Code § 2 351.01 et seq.) and all 115
112112 other applicable District law; 116
113113 (2) Be consistent with the standards developed by the Mayor under sub-117
114114 section (d) of this section; 118
115115 (3) Where executed with external, non-governmental service providers, 119
116116 provide for non-exclusive provision of services to offer flexibility to maximize food procurement 120
117117 aligned with GFPP values; and 121
118118 (4) Require that contractors and sub-contractors clearly itemize the 122
119119 amount spent on food products separate from other services or administrative costs. 123
120120 Sec. 6. Food Quality, Health and Safety Reporting. 124
121121 (a) DOC shall make the following reports available to the public by publishing on 125
122122 the DOC webpage within 30 days of receipt from the reporting agency or individual: 126
123123 (1) Quarterly inspection of food service operations compliance conducted 127
124124 by the Food Protection Branch of the Department of Health, or similar equivalent report; 128 (2) Monthly inspection of environmental safety and sanitation of the 129
125125 culinary unit conducted by the Safety Officer of the DOC, or similar equivalent report; 130
126126 and 131
127127 (3) Quarterly inspection of food service operations conducted by the Food 132
128128 Services Contract Monitor of the DOC, or similar equivalent report. 133
129129 (b) The following inspections shall be performed in partnership with a Task Force 134
130130 representative, as designated by the Task Force, and, if possible, unannounced to DOC 135
131131 employees, contractors, or other representatives: 136
132132 (1) Quarterly inspection of food service operations compliance 137
133133 conducted by the Food Protection Branch of the Department of Health, or similar 138
134134 equivalent inspection; 139
135135 (2) Monthly inspection of environmental safety and sanitation of the 140
136136 culinary unit conducted by the Safety Officer of the DOC, or similar equivalent 141
137137 inspection; and 142
138138 (3) Quarterly inspection of food service operations conducted by the Food 143
139139 Services Contract Monitor of the DOC, or similar equivalent inspection. 144
140140 (c) DOC shall provide a public annual progress report to the Mayor and Council 145
141141 on the quality, health, and safety of food programs in DOC facilities and DOC’s 146
142142 implementation of the Good Food Purchasing Policy during the preceding year, 147
143143 including, at a minimum, the following: 148
144144 (1) Food security screening of all DOC detainees; 149
145145 (2).Assessment of DOC’s alignment with each of GFPP’s core values; 150 (3) All actions taken by DOC and its partners to advance each of GFPP’s 151
146146 core values; 152
147147 (4) Any citations received by DOC and its contractors during the 153
148148 preceding year related to food safety or nutrition and associated mitigation plans; 154
149149 (5) Data on food-borne illnesses and diet-related diseases and chronic 155
150150 medical conditions among detainees, including frequency of medical visits categorized by 156
151151 ailment or condition; 157
152152 (6) Data on food waste in correctional facilities; 158
153153 (7) Photos of meals served in correctional facilities; 159
154154 (8) Quarterly surveys of detainees about food quality and meal delivery, 160
155155 with questions designed by the Task Force and administered such that detainees may respond 161
156156 anonymously; 162
157157 (9) Qualitative data on detainee satisfaction with food in correctional 163
158158 facilities; and 164
159159 (10) Data on detainee participation in hospitality job readiness & training, 165
160160 including number of detainees participating in job training compared to the number of eligible 166
161161 detainees. 167
162162 Sec. 7. Task Force. 168
163163 (a) Starting no later than July 1, 2023, Council shall convene a task force, which 169
164164 shall be known as the Healthy Food in DC Correctional Facilities Task Force ("Task Force"). 170
165165 (b) The Chairman of the Council shall appoint a Council representative to the 171
166166 Task Force. 172 (c) The Mayor shall appoint representatives from the following District 173
167167 government agencies to the Task Force: 174
168168 (1) Department of Corrections; 175
169169 (2) DC Food Policy Council; 176
170170 (3) Department of Health; 177
171171 (4) Department of Energy and the Environment; 178
172172 (5) Department of Employment Services; and 179
173173 (6) Mayor's Office on Returning Citizens. 180
174174 (d) The Mayor shall also appoint: 181
175175 (1) One male individual and one female individual who was formerly 182
176176 incarcerated in DOC facilities and has work experience in the food services or hospitality 183
177177 industries; 184
178178 (2) One male individual and one female individual who is currently 185
179179 incarcerated in DOC facilities; 186
180180 (3) An individual with expertise in researching or implementing food 187
181181 policy in carceral settings; 188
182182 (4) A representative from the DC Good Food Purchasing Coalition; and 189
183183 (5) A registered dietitian. 190
184184 (e)(1) The Task Force, in partnership with the DC Food Policy Council, shall 191
185185 submit a healthy food in DC correctional facilities report to the Mayor and Council by July 1, 192
186186 2024. 193
187187 (2) The report shall identify implementable steps to accomplish the 194
188188 following in 5 years: 195 (A) Establish nutritional guidelines and meal programs that support 196
189189 detainee health, well-being, and religious and cultural identities; 197
190190 (B) Transition towards a self-operated food service model, where 198
191191 meals are cooked and prepared from ingredients within District government facilities; 199
192192 (C) Establish or increase capacity of a hospitality and culinary arts 200
193193 training and education program for DOC detainees, with an emphasis on increasing participants’ 201
194194 economic stability and reducing recidivism by connecting participants with apprenticeship or job 202
195195 placements and supportive services upon release; 203
196196 (D) Increase healthy, affordable food options in jail commissaries, 204
197197 with at least 70% of food options meeting established nutritional standards; 205
198198 (E) Include an urban farm within the design of any new or 206
199199 remodeled D.C. jail facilities, where any food produced that is eligible for consumption shall be 207
200200 directed for consumption by detainees and any surplus food shall be donated to local food banks; 208
201201 (F) Consider creation of a permanent, independent oversight body 209
202202 for the Department of Corrections; 210
203203 (G) Consider creation and use of a central dining area or other 211
204204 mealtime facilities conducive to positive eating habits, serving food at appropriate temperatures, 212
205205 and safety; 213
206206 (H) Create a long-term procedure or focus group within DOC to 214
207207 engage and regularly survey detainees regarding food served, meal delivery, and mealtime 215
208208 procedures at DOC facilities, and to incorporate detainee feedback into the food program on an 216
209209 ongoing basis; 217 (I) Introduce programming on nutrition and health education for 218
210210 detainees of DOC facilities; and 219
211211 (J) Other related goals at the discretion of the Task Force. 220
212212 (f) The Task Force shall meet every 6 weeks until it submits the report required 221
213213 pursuant to subsection (e) of this section. 222
214214 (g) The Task Force shall not be considered a public body for purposes of 223
215215 subchapter IV of Chapter 5 of Title 2. 224
216216 Sec. 8. Hospitality Careers 225
217217 (a) The Mayor shall establish a hospitality and culinary arts training program 226
218218 (“Program”) for DOC detainees in partnership with existing hospitality and culinary arts career 227
219219 training and education programs within 8 months of publication of the report prepared by the 228
220220 Task Force, as provided by section 7(e). The Program should be established pursuant to the 229
221221 recommendations set forth by the Task Force in the report prepared pursuant to section 7(e). The 230
222222 Program shall provide hospitality career and culinary arts training and education opportunities 231
223223 for DOC detainees, including, at a minimum, food handlers certification. The Program shall 232
224224 identify employer partners to assist with apprenticeship or job placement for Program 233
225225 participants upon release from DOC facilities and connect participants who are placed with 234
226226 wraparound services, including life skills training, employment coaching, housing, and 235
227227 healthcare. 236
228228 (b) Part of the foods procured using funds from the Fresh Food Fund should be prepared 237
229229 by DOC detainees engaged in the Program. 238 (c) All DOC detainees engaged in food preparation or related services shall be paid no 239
230230 less than the living wage as established pursuant to the Way to Work Amendment Act, effective 240
231231 June 8, 2006 (D.C. Law 16-118; D.C. Official Code § 2-220.02 et seq.) 241
232232 Sec. 9. Fiscal Impact Statement. 242
233233 The Council adopts the fiscal impact statement in the committee report as the fiscal 243
234234 impact statement required by section 4a of the General Legislative Procedures Act of 1975, 244
235235 approved October 16, 2006 (12 Stat. 2038; D.C. Official Code § 1-301.47a). 245
236236 Sec. 10. Effective Date. 246
237237 This act shall take effect following approval by the Mayor (or in the event of veto by the 247
238238 Mayor, action by the Council to override the veto), a 30-day period of congressional review as 248
239239 provided in section 602(c)(l) of the District of Columbia Home Rule Act, approved December 249
240240 24, 1973 (87 Stat. 813; D.C. Official Code§ l-206.02(c)(l)), and publication in the District of 250
241241 Columbia Register. 251