| 1 | 1 | | COUNCIL OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA |
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| 2 | 2 | | The John A. Wilson Building |
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| 3 | 3 | | 1350 Pennsylvania Avenue, nw |
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| 4 | 4 | | Washington, D.C. 20004 |
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| 5 | 5 | | |
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| 6 | 6 | | |
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| 7 | 7 | | |
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| 8 | 8 | | Statement of Introduction |
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| 9 | 9 | | Entertainment Establishment Employee Safety Amendment Act of 2024 |
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| 10 | 10 | | September 16, 2024 |
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| 11 | 11 | | |
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| 12 | 12 | | |
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| 13 | 13 | | Today, I am proud to introduce the Entertainment Establishment Employee Safety Amendment |
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| 14 | 14 | | Act of 2024 along with Councilmembers Brooke Pinto and Matthew Frumin. This legislation |
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| 15 | 15 | | would exempt Class C and D alcohol license holders from being required to accept cash as a |
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| 16 | 16 | | form of payment for goods or services. Class C license holders are establishments such as |
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| 17 | 17 | | restaurants, hotels, taverns, nightclubs, and other entertainment venues, allowing them to serve |
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| 18 | 18 | | spirits, beer, and wine. Class D licenses cover the same establishments but restrict service to beer |
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| 19 | 19 | | and wine only. |
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| 20 | 20 | | |
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| 21 | 21 | | The Cashless Retailers Prohibition Act, passed in 2020 and funded in the Fiscal Year 2023 |
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| 22 | 22 | | budget, prohibited retail establishments from discriminating against cash as a form of payment. |
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| 23 | 23 | | However, due to public safety concerns, a provision was included in the Secure DC Omnibus |
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| 24 | 24 | | Amendment Act of 2024 to temporarily pause implementation of this law. This pause is set to |
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| 25 | 25 | | expire on January 1, 2025, at which the cashless retailer prohibition will go into effect. |
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| 26 | 26 | | |
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| 27 | 27 | | Many businesses, particularly those that sell alcohol, are concerned for their employees’ safety |
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| 28 | 28 | | and have shared multiple stories about successful and attempted robberies and burglaries. |
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| 29 | 29 | | Businesses that are cashless are not at risk of robbery in the same way as businesses with cash on |
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| 30 | 30 | | hand. By exempting the requirement to accept cash payments, this legislation will allow Class C |
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| 31 | 31 | | and D alcohol license holders the option to operate as cashless establishments if they feel it is |
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| 32 | 32 | | necessary for the safety of their employees and patrons. The primary reason establishments |
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| 33 | 33 | | choose to avoid cash payments is to reduce the risk of robbery and burglary, followed by the |
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| 34 | 34 | | availability of non-cash payment options and to reduce the risk of internal theft. It is important to |
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| 35 | 35 | | note that while this bill grants flexibility, all establishments have the option to accept cash as a |
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| 36 | 36 | | form of payment. |
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| 37 | 37 | | |
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| 38 | 38 | | I look forward to continue working with my Council colleagues to balance the safety of workers |
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| 39 | 39 | | in these establishments and ensuring cash remains a payment option in most businesses. |
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| 40 | 40 | | Christina Henderson Committee Member |
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| 41 | 41 | | Councilmember, At-Large Hospital and Health Equity |
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| 42 | 42 | | Chairperson, Committee on Health Judiciary and Public Safety |
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| 43 | 43 | | Transportation and the Environment |
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| 44 | 44 | | _________________________ ______________________________ 1 |
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| 45 | 45 | | Councilmember Brooke Pinto Councilmember Christina Henderson 2 |
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| 46 | 46 | | 3 |
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| 47 | 47 | | 4 |
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| 48 | 48 | | 5 |
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| 49 | 49 | | _____________________________ 6 |
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| 50 | 50 | | Councilmember Matthew Frumin 7 |
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| 51 | 51 | | 8 |
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| 52 | 52 | | 9 |
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| 53 | 53 | | 10 |
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| 54 | 54 | | A BILL 11 |
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| 55 | 55 | | 12 |
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| 56 | 56 | | ________ 13 |
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| 57 | 57 | | 14 |
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| 58 | 58 | | 15 |
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| 59 | 59 | | IN THE COUNCIL OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA 16 |
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| 60 | 60 | | 17 |
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| 61 | 61 | | ________________ 18 |
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| 62 | 62 | | 19 |
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| 63 | 63 | | To amend Section 28-5404 of the District of Columbia Official Code to allow retail 20 |
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| 64 | 64 | | establishments with a valid on-premises Class C and Class D retailer license to refuse 21 |
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| 65 | 65 | | cash as a form of payment. 22 |
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| 66 | 66 | | 23 |
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| 67 | 67 | | BE IT ENACTED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA, That this 24 |
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| 68 | 68 | | act may be cited as the “Entertainment Establishment Employee Safety Amendment Act of 25 |
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| 69 | 69 | | 2024.” 26 |
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| 70 | 70 | | Sec. 2. Section 28-5404 of the District of Columbia Official Code is amended as follows: 27 |
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| 71 | 71 | | (a) Paragraph (3)(c) is amended by striking the phrase “; or” and inserting a semicolon in 28 |
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| 72 | 72 | | its place. 29 |
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| 73 | 73 | | (b) Paragraph (4) is amended by striking the period and inserting the phase “; or” in its 30 |
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| 74 | 74 | | place. 31 |
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| 75 | 75 | | (c) A new paragraph (5) is added to read as follows: 32 |
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| 76 | 76 | | “(5) To any retail establishment with a valid on-premises Class C or Class D retailer 33 |
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| 77 | 77 | | license.”. 34 |
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| 78 | 78 | | Sec. 3. Fiscal impact statement. 35 The Council adopts the fiscal impact statement in the committee report as the fiscal 36 |
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| 79 | 79 | | impact statement required by section 4a of the General Leg37 |
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| 80 | 80 | | approved October 16, 2006 (120 Stat. 2038; D.C. Official Code § 1-301.47a). 38 |
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| 81 | 81 | | Sec. 4. Effective date. 39 |
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| 82 | 82 | | This act shall take effect following approval by the Mayor (or in the event of veto by the 40 |
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| 83 | 83 | | Mayor, action by the Council to override the veto), and a 30-day period of congressional review 41 |
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| 84 | 84 | | as provided in section 602(c)(1) of the District of Columbia Home Rule Act, approved December 42 |
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| 85 | 85 | | 24, 1973 (87 Stat. 813; D.C. Official Code § 1-206.02(c)(1)). 43 |
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