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Councilmember Robert C. White, Jr. 2
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A BILL 6
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IN THE COUNCIL OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA 9
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To amend, on a temporary basis, the District of Columbia Housing Authority Act of 1999 to 12
establish a temporary Stabilization and Reform Board to govern the District of Columbia 13
Housing Authority (“DCHA”) and to require that the Board and the Executive Director of 14
DCHA take specific actions to reform and revitalize the operations of DCHA. 15
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BE IT ENACTED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA, That this 17
Act may be cited as the “District of Columbia Housing Authority Stabilization and Reform 18
Temporary Amendment Act of 2023”. 19
Sec. 2. The District of Columbia Housing Authority Act of 1999, effective May 9, 2000 20
(D.C. Law 13-105; D.C. Official Code § 6-201 et seq.), is amended as follows: 21
(a) Section 2 (D.C. Official Code § 6-201) is amended as follows: 22
(1) Paragraph (6) is amended by striking the phrase “Board of Commissioners” 23
and inserting the phrase “Stabilization and Reform Board” in its place. 24
(2) Paragraph (12) is repealed. 25
(3) A new paragraph (17A) is added to read as follows: 26
“(17A) “Dwelling unit” means any room or group of rooms located within a 27
residential or mixed-use building and forming a single unit that is used or intended to be used for 28
living, sleeping, and the preparation and eating of meals.”. 29
(b) Section 10(h) (D.C. Official Code § 6-209(h)) is amended as follows: 30 (1) Strike the phrase “or Commissioner of the Authority” and insert the phrase 31
“member of the Board, or member of the former Board of Commissioners” in its place. 32
(2) Strike the phrase “a Commissioner” and insert the phrase “a member of the 33
Board, member of the former Board of Commissioners,” in its place. 34
(c) New sections 11a, 11b, and 11c are added to read as follows: 35
“Sec. 11a. Stabilization and Reform Board. 36
“(a) The Authority shall, from and after the date set forth in subsection (i) of this section, 37
be governed by a Stabilization and Reform Board, which shall consist of the following members: 38
“(1) The following 9 voting members, each of whom shall be a resident of the 39
District: 40
“(A) One member with experience in housing development or operations; 41
“(B) One member with experience in affordable housing development, 42
operations, or finance; 43
“(C) One member with knowledge of federal housing law and regulation; 44
“(D) One member with experience in capital project financing; 45
“(E) One member who is a resident of a property owned, operated, and 46
managed by the Authority; 47
“(F) One member with experience as a voucher holder; 48
“(G) The current Executive Director of the Interagency Council on 49
Homelessness; 50
“(H) The Director of the District’s Office of Budget and Performance 51
Management; and 52
“(I) One member with experience in government procurement; 53 “(2) The Chief Financial Officer, or a designee of the Chief Financial Officer who 54
is an employee of the Office of the Chief Financial Officer, who shall serve as a non-voting 55
member; and 56
“(3) The President of the City- Wide Resident Advisory Board, who shall serve as 57
a non- voting member. 58
“(b)(1) Except as provided in paragraph (2) of this subsection and subsections (c) and 59
(f)(1) of this section, each member of the Stabilization and Reform Board shall be appointed by 60
the Mayor, with the advice and consent of the Council pursuant to section 2(e) of the 61
Confirmation Act of 1978, effective March 3, 1979 (D.C. Law 2- 142; D.C. Official Code § 1-62
523.01(e)). 63
“(2) The Director of the District’s Office of Budget and Performance 64
Management and the Chief Financial Officer, or the Chief Financial Officer’s designee, shall 65
serve as members of the Stabilization and Reform Board by virtue of their incumbency in the 66
position of Director of the District’s Office of Budget and Performance Management and Chief 67
Financial Officer or employee of the Office of the Chief Financial Officer. 68
“(c) Notwithstanding subsection (b) of this section, the Mayor may appoint the following 69
individuals to the Stabilization and Reform Board without the advice and consent of the Council 70
pursuant to section 2(e) of the Confirmation Act of 1978, effective March 3, 1979 (D.C. Law 2-71
142; D.C. Official Code § 1- 523.01(e)): 72
“(1) Raymond A. Skinner, to fill the Board seat described in subsection (a)(1)(A) 73
of this section and to serve as chairperson of the Stabilization and Reform Board; 74
“(2) James M. Dickerson, to fill the Board seat described in subsection (a)(1)(B) 75
of this section; 76 “(3) Christopher Murphy, to fill the Board seat described in subsection (a)(1)(C) 77
of this section; 78
“(4) Melissa Lee, to fill the Board seat described in subsection (a)(1)(D) of this 79
section; 80
“(5) Denise Blackson, to the fill the Board sear described in subsection (a)(1)(E) 81
of this section; 82
“(6) Ronnie Harris, to fill the Board seat described in subsection (a)(1)(F) of this 83
section; 84
“(7) Theresa Silla, to fill the Board seat described in subsection (a)(1)(G) of this 85
section; and 86
“(8) Katrina D. Jones, to fill the Board seat described in subsection (a)(1)(I) of 87
this section. 88
“(d) The members of the Stabilization and Reform Board referred to in subsection 89
(a)(1)(A) through (I) of this section shall each serve for one term of 2 years or until the Board 90
sunsets; provided, that each such member may continue to serve until a successor board assumes 91
the responsibilities of the Stabilization and Reform Board; provided further, that in the event of a 92
vacancy in the seat of such a member of the Board, the Mayor may appoint a member, pursuant 93
to subsection (b)(1) of this section, to serve the remainder of the unexpired term or until a 94
successor board assumes the responsibilities of the Stabilization and Reform Board. 95
“(e) Upon a vacancy in the position chairperson of the Stabilization and Reform Board, 96
the Mayor shall designate a chairperson from among the members of the Stabilization and 97
Reform Board referred to in subsection (a)(1)(A) through (I) of this section. 98 “(f)(1) Upon a vacancy of any seat of the Stabilization and Reform Board, the Mayor 99
shall nominate a replacement who meets the qualifications of the vacant seat pursuant to 100
subsection (a)(1) of this section; provided, that this shall not apply to the seat established by 101
subsection (a)(1)(A) of this section. If the seat established by subsection (a)(1)(A) of this section 102
becomes vacant, the Council shall appoint a successor. 103
“(2) A Mayoral nomination shall be submitted to the Council pursuant to 104
subsection (b)(1) of this section. 105
“(g)(1) The Stabilization and Reform Board shall meet at least 10 times per year. All 106
meetings of the Stabilization and Reform Board shall be open to the public, except as may 107
otherwise be authorized by the Open Meetings Act, effective March 31, 2011 (D.C. Law 18- 350; 108
D.C. Official Code § 2- 571 et seq.). 109
“(2) All regular meetings of the Board must be publicized through a notice, 110
published in the District of Columbia Register one week prior to the meeting that contains the 111
date, time, and location of the meeting. 112
“(3) Each regular meeting shall provide for a period of public comments, which 113
shall not be limited in time, except that the time allowed for each individual speaker may be 114
reasonably limited. 115
“(h) For the purposes of taking any official action, a quorum of the Stabilization and 116
Reform Board shall consist of 5 members 117
“(i) The Stabilization and Reform Board established by this section shall assume 118
authority from the Board of Commissioners established by section 12, and the Board of 119
Commissioners shall be dissolved, upon the swearing in of at least 5 members of the 120
Stabilization and Reform Board. 121 “(j) The Authority shall provide to the Stabilization and Reform Board at least 2 full-time 122
employees who are qualified to provide legal and policy research as requested by members of the 123
Board. Except as otherwise provided by law, a full-time employee provided to the Board 124
pursuant to this subsection shall not share with employees of the Authority information about 125
research performed for a Board member, unless the member of the Board authorizes sharing of 126
information. 127
“Sec. 11b. Reform activities. 128
“(a) Within 15 days after the end of each calendar quarter, the Executive Director shall, 129
after submission to the Stabilization and Reform Board and the City- Wide Resident Advisory 130
Board, submit a report to the Mayor and the Council that describes the progress of the Authority 131
in: 132
“(1) Addressing and remediating the issues identified by the U.S. Department of 133
Housing and Urban Development in its 2022 assessment of the Authority (the “HUD DC001 134
Assessment”); 135
“(2) Developing and implementing a plan to expedite the leasing of dwelling units 136
owned, operated, or managed by the Authority; 137
“(3) Identifying individual dwelling units within Housing Properties of the 138
Authority that are in a substandard condition and improving the condition of such units to a state 139
of good repair; 140
“(4) Developing and implementing a plan for the maintenance, in an ongoing state 141
of good repair, of Housing Properties of the Authority and individual dwellings units within 142
those Housing Properties; 143 “(5) Improving the management of the wait list for dwelling units within Housing 144
Properties of the Authority; 145
“(6)(A) Reviewing and developing recommendations for improvements of the 146
Authority’s: 147
“(i) Capital and operating budgets; 148
“(ii) Capital and operating expenditures; 149
“(iii) Accounting and fiscal management systems, controls and 150
procedures; and 151
“(iv) Contracting and procurement systems, controls, and 152
procedures. 153
“(B) Requirements of this paragraph are subject to review by the Chief 154
Financial Officer measured against industry and government standards and best practices; and 155
“(7) Meeting the training requirements established by sections 12(h) and 14(d). 156
“(b) In addition to the requirements of subsection (a) of this section, the Executive 157
Director shall submit to the Council any updated policies, procedures, and reports provided to the 158
United States Department of Housing and Urban Development as outlined in the Authority’s 159
“Response to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s March 2022 On-Site 160
Assessment Report,” published on November 29, 2022. Such policies, procedures and reports 161
shall be submitted no later than 48 hours after submission to the United States Department of 162
Housing and Urban Development. 163
“(c) The Stabilization and Reform Board shall: 164
“(1) Review the progress of the Authority in addressing the findings and 165
recommendations in the HUD DC001 Assessment each month; 166 “(2) Schedule and complete at least 4 listening sessions, 1 in each quadrant, to 167
hear from public housing residents about concerns and experiences by May 2023; 168
“(3) At least once a quarter, invite the City-Wide Resident Advisory Board to 169
report to the Board on any topics of interest or concerns, and respond to the concerns of the City-170
Wide Resident Advisory Board in writing, no later than 45 days following the quarterly meeting; 171
and 172
“(4) Provide recommendations to the Mayor and the Council by July 1, 2024, for 173
the structure of a successor Board of Directors to govern the Authority on an ongoing basis. 174
“(d) If requested by the Council, a quorum of members of the Stabilization and Reform 175
Board shall attend a Council oversight hearing on the Authority and provide testimony. 176
“(e) A quorum of members of the Stabilization and Reform Board shall be present at each 177
listening session held pursuant to subsection (c)(2) of this section. 178
“Sec. 11c. City-Wide Resident Advisory Board. 179
“(a) The Authority shall establish and implement a comprehensive training program for 180
members of the City-Wide Resident Advisory Board with the goal of enabling tenant members to 181
participate fully in the oversight of the housing authority’s operation and capital planning. The 182
Authority shall develop the training program in consultation with public housing residents and 183
public housing industry professional organizations. 184
“(b)(1) The City-Wide Resident Advisory Board shall be provided access to trainings 185
referenced in section 12(h)(1) and (2). 186
“(2) Additionally, the Authority shall provide training on relevant federal and 187
District laws, leadership development, communication, and negotiations. 188 “(c) The Authority shall provide a copy of resolutions on the agenda for consideration by 189
the Stabilization and Reform Board to the City-Wide Resident Advisory Board at least 24 hours 190
prior to the scheduled date and time of the Stabilization and Reform Board meeting at which the 191
resolution will be considered. 192
“(d) The Authority shall seek and consider the input of the City- Wide Resident Advisory 193
Board when a policy or program change affects residents.”. 194
(d) Section 12 (D.C. Official Code § 6- 211) is amended as follows: 195
(1) The section heading is amended to read as follows: 196
“Sec. 12. Additional Board provisions.”. 197
(2) Subsections (a), (b), (c), (e), (f), (g), (i), (j), (k), (l), (m), (n), (o), (p), (q), 198
(v)(3), and (w) are repealed. 199
(3) Subsection (r) is amended by striking the phrase “No Commissioner” and 200
inserting the phrase “No member of the Board” in its place. 201
(4) Subsection (s) is amended by striking the phrase “Commissioners shall” and 202
inserting the phrase “Each member of the Board referred to in section 11a(a)(1)(A) through (I) 203
shall” in its place. 204
(5) Subsection (u) is amended by striking the phrase “any Commissioner” and 205
inserting the phrase “any member of the Board” in its place. 206
(e) Section 14 (D.C. Official Code § 6- 213) is amended as follows: 207
(1) Subsection (c) is amended by striking the phrase “direction and supervision” 208
and inserting the word “oversight” in its place. 209
(2) A new subsection (e) is added to read as follows: 210 “(e) As part of the process of selecting an Executive Director, the Board shall seek and 211
consider the input of public housing residents, voucher holders, and the resident advisory board 212
for the Authority.”. 213
(f) Section 21 (D.C. Official Code § 6- 220) is amended as follows: 214
(1) The section heading is amended by striking the phrase “Board of 215
Commissioners” and inserting the word “Board” in its place. 216
(2) Subsection (a) is amended by striking the phrase “each Commissioner” and 217
inserting the phrase “each member of the Board” in its place. 218
(3) Subsection (b) is amended as follows: 219
(A) Strike the phrase “as a Commissioner” and insert the phrase “as a 220
member of the Board or a member of the former Board of Commissioners” in its place. 221
(B) Strike the phrase “former Commissioner” and insert the phrase 222
“former member of the Board or former member of the former Board of Commissioners” in its 223
place. 224
(C) Strike the phrase “as Commissioner” and insert the phrase “as a 225
member of the Board or a member of the former Board of Commissioners” in its place. 226
(D) Strike the phrase “any former Commissioner” and insert the phrase 227
“any former member of the Board or former member of the former Board of Commissioners” in 228
its place. 229
(4) Subsection (c) is amended by striking the phrase “any Commissioner” and 230
inserting the phrase “any member of the Board” in its place. 231
(g) Section 26g(b)(2)(C) (D.C. Official Code § 6-232(b)(2)(C)) is amended by striking 232
the phrase “resident commissioner and to vote for candidates for resident commissioner to serve 233 on the Board, as provided in section 12” and inserting the phrase “resident commissioner” in its 234
place. 235
Sec. 3. Conforming amendment. 236
Section 2(e) of the Confirmation Act of 1978, effective March 3, 1979 (D.C. Law 2- 142; 237
D.C. Official Code § 1- 523.01(e)), is amended by adding a new paragraph (27A) to read as 238
follows: 239
“(27A) The Stabilization and Reform Board of the District of Columbia Housing 240
Authority, established by section 11a of the District of Columbia Housing Authority Act of 1999, 241
passed on 2nd reading on January 3, 2023 (Enrolled version of Bill 24- 1145);”. 242
Sec. 4. Fiscal impact statement. 243
The Council adopts the fiscal impact statement of the Budget Director as the fiscal impact 244
statement required by section 4a of the General Legislative Procedures Act of 1975, approved 245
October 16, 2006 (120 Stat. 2038; D.C. Official Code § 1- 301.47a). 246
Sec. 5. Effective date. 247
(a) This act shall take effect following approval by the Mayor (or in the event of veto by 248
the Mayor, action by the Council to override the veto), a 30- day period of congressional review 249
as provided in section 602(c)(1) of the District of Columbia Home Rule Act, approved December 250
24, 1973 (87 Stat. 813; D.C. Official Code § 1- 206.02(c)(1)), and publication in the District of 251
Columbia Register. 252
(b) This act shall expire after 225 days of its having taken effect. 253