DC
District Of Columbia Council Bill B26-0036

District Of Columbia 2025-2026 Regular Session

District Of Columbia Council Bill B26-0036 Compare Versions

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1- ENROLLED ORIGINAL
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57+A BILL
58+;1if;;p~
59+Chairman Phil Mendelson
60+at the request
61+of the Mayor
62+11 IN THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA
63+12
64+13
65+14
66+15
67+16 To amend, on an emergency basis, section 205 of the Clemency Board Establishment Act of
68+17 2018 to authorize the Clemency Board of the District of Columbia to, for applicants
69+18 seeking a pardon, grant a waiver of the five-year waiting period.
70+19
71+20 BE IT ENACTED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA, That this
72+21 act may be cited as the "Clemency Board Waiver Authority Emergency Amendment Act of
73+22 2025".
74+23 Sec. 2. Section 205 of the Clemency Board Establishment Act of 2018, effective
75+24 December
76+13, 2018 (D.C. Law 22-197; D.C. Official Code§ 24-481.05), is amended by adding a
77+25 new subsection (f) to read as follows:
78+26 "(f) The Board may, upon written request of the applicant, grant a waiver of the
79+2 7 requirements
80+of subsection ( c )( 1) of this section; provided, that:
81+28 "( 1) The Board shall only grant a waiver under this subsection where the Board is
82+29 in receipt of notice from the Office of the Pardon Attorney that the Pardon Attorney or the
83+30 President of the United States has provided the applicant with a waiver of the five-year
84+31 requirement pursuant to § 9-140 .112 of the Department of Justice Manual; “(2) The Board may decline to grant a waiver under this subsection even when the 32
85+Board is in receipt of the notice described in paragraph (1) of this subsection; 33
86+“(3) The Board shall not grant a waiver under this subsection when the applicant 34
87+is on probation, parole, or supervised release; 35
88+“(4) The Board may request additional information from the applicant to support 36
89+their request for a waiver of subsection (c)(1) of this section, which may include a request to 37
90+meet with the applicant to discuss their waiver request; 38
91+“(5) The Board shall provide the applicant with written notice of the Board’s 39
92+decision to grant or deny a waiver request pursuant to this subsection; and 40
93+“(6) Prior to the Board making a determination whether to grant a request for a 41
94+waiver pursuant to this subsection, the applicant’s application shall be deferred until a 42
95+determination is made.” 43
96+Sec. 3. Fiscal impact statement. 44
97+The Council adopts the fiscal impact statement of the Chief Financial Officer as the fiscal 45
98+impact statement required by section 4a of the General Legislative Procedures Act of 1975, 46
99+approved October 16, 2006 (120 Stat. 2038; D.C. Offiacial Code § 1-301.47a). 47
100+Sec. 4. Effective date. 48
101+This act shall take effect following approval by the Mayor (or in the event of veto by the 49
102+Mayor, action by the Council to override the veto), and shall remain in effect for no longer than 50
103+90 days, as provided for emergency acts of the Council of the District of Columbia in section 51
104+412(a) of the District of Columbia Home Rule Act, approved December 24, 1973 (87 Stat. 788; 52
105+D.C. Official Code § 1-204.12(a)). 53 Government of the District of Columbia
106+Office of the Chief Financial Officer
107+
108+Glen Lee
109+Chief Financial Officer
2110
3111
4112
5-1
6-
7-AN ACT
8-
9-___________
10113
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12-IN THE COUNCIL OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA
115+1350 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW, Suite 203, Washington, DC 20004 (202)727-2476
116+www.cfo.dc.gov
117+MEMORANDUM
13118
14-___________
119+TO: The Honorable Phil Mendelson
120+ Chairman, Council of the District of Columbia
121+
122+FROM: Glen Lee
123+ Chief Financial Officer
124+
125+DATE: December 12, 2024
126+
127+SUBJECT: Fiscal Impact Statement – Clemency Board Waiver Authority
128+Emergency Amendment Act of 2025
129+
130+REFERENCE: Draft Emergency Bill as provided to the Office of Revenue Analysis on
131+December 10, 2024
15132
16133
17-To amend, on an emergency basis, section 205 of the Clemency Board Establishment Act of
18-2018 to authorize the Clemency Board to, for applicants seeking a pardon, grant a waiver
19-of the 5- year waiting period.
134+Conclusion
20135
21-BE IT ENACTED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA, That this
22-act may be cited as the “Clemency Board Waiver Authority Emergency Amendment Act of
23-2025”.
136+Funds are sufficient in the fiscal year 2025 through fiscal year 2028 budget and financial plan to
137+implement the emergency bill.
24138
25-Sec. 2. Section 205 of the Clemency Board Establishment Act of 2018, effective
26-December 13, 2018 (D.C. Law 22- 197; D.C. Official Code § 24- 481.05), is amended by adding a
27-new subsection (f) to read as follows:
28-“(f) The Board may, upon written request of the applicant, grant a waiver of the
29-requirements of subsection (c)(1) of this section; provided, that:
30-“(1) The Board shall only grant a waiver under this subsection where the Board is
31-in receipt of notice from the Office of the Pardon Attorney that the Pardon Attorney or the
32-President of the United States has provided the applicant with a waiver of the 5- year requirement
33-pursuant to § 9- 140.112 of the Department of Justice Manual;
34-“(2) The Board may decline to grant a waiver under this subsection even when the
35-Board is in receipt of the notice described in paragraph (1) of this subsection;
36-“(3) The Board shall not grant a waiver under this subsection when the applicant
37-is on probation, parole, or supervised release;
38-“(4) The Board may request additional information from the applicant to support
39-their request for a waiver of subsection (c)(1) of this section, which may include a request to
40-meet with the applicant to discuss their waiver request;
41-“(5) The Board shall provide the applicant with written notice of the Board’s
42-decision to grant or deny a waiver request pursuant to this subsection; and
43-“(6) Prior to the Board making a determination whether to grant a request for a
44-waiver pursuant to this subsection, the applicant’s application shall be deferred until a
45-determination is made.”. ENROLLED ORIGINAL
139+Background
140+
141+The Clemency Board of the District of Columbia (Board) reviews pardon or communication requests
142+from individuals convicted of committing DC Code offenses. Because the District is not a state, the
143+Board cannot grant clemency, but it can recommend clemency to the President of the United States
144+and the Department of Justice Pardon Attorney.
145+
146+Current law requires individuals to wait five years after the date of their release from confinement
147+or, in case no prison sentence was imposed, five years after the date of the conviction before they can
148+apply to seek a pardon. The emergency bill allows
149+1 the Board, upon written request of the applicant,
150+to grant a waiver of the five-year waiting period if the Board is in receipt of notice from the Office of
151+the Pardon Attorney that the Pardon Attorney or the President of the United States has provided the
152+applicant with a waiver of the five-year requirement. The Board may decline to grant a waiver under
153+this subsection even when the Board is in receipt of a notice from the Office of the Pardon Attorney.
154+The Board is prohibited from granting a waiver when an applicant is on probation, parole, or
155+
156+1
157+ By amending Section 205 of the Clemency Board Establishment Act of 2018, effective December 13, 2018
158+(D.C. Law 22-197; D.C. Official Code § 24-481.05). The Honorable Phil Mendelson
159+FIS: “Clemency Board Waiver Authority Emergency Amendment Act of 2025,” Draft Emergency Bill as
160+provided to the Office of Revenue Analysis on December 10, 2024
161+Page 2 of 2
162+
163+supervised release. The Board may request additional information from the applicant to support
164+their request for a waiver. The Board must provide the applicant with written notice of the Board’s
165+decision to grant or deny a waiver request.
166+
167+Financial Plan Impact
168+
169+Funds are sufficient in the fiscal year 2025 through fiscal year 2028 budget and financial plan to
170+implement the emergency bill. The Board can review and grant waiver requests with existing staff.
171+The Mayor’s Office of General Counsel provides administrative staff support to the Board. No
172+additional resources are required to implement the bill. 1350 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W., Suite 409, Washington, D.C. 20004 Phone (202) 724- 5524 Email: b enjamin.moskowitz1@dc.gov
173+
174+
175+GOVERNMENT OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA
176+Office of the Attorney General
46177
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48179
49-2
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52-Sec. 3. Fiscal impact statement.
53-The Council adopts the fiscal impact statement of the Chief Financial Officer as the fiscal
54-impact statement required by section 4a of the General Legislative Procedures Act of 1975, approved October 16, 2006 (120 Stat. 2038; D.C. Offi acial Code § 1- 301.47a).
55- Sec. 4. Effective date.
56-This act shall take effect following approval by the Mayor (or in the event of veto by the
57-Mayor, action by the Council to override the veto), and shall remain in effect for no longer than 90 days, as provided for emergency acts of the Council of the District of Columbia in section
58-412(a) of the District of Columbia Home Rule Act, approved December 24, 1973 (87 Stat. 788; D.C. Official Code § 1- 204.12(a)).
182+Legal Counsel Division
59183
60184
185+MEMORANDUM TO: Tomás Talamante
186+ Director
187+ Office of Policy and Legislative Affairs FROM: Benjamin E. Moskowitz
188+Acting Deputy Attorney General
189+Legal Counsel Division
190+ DATE: November 19, 2024
191+ RE: Legal Sufficiency Review of Draft Legislation, the “Clemency Board Waiver
192+Authority Emergency Amendment Act of 2024” and Emergency Resolution
193+ (AE-24-542)
61194
62-___________________________________ Chairman
63-Council of the District of Columbia
64- _________________________________ Mayor
65-District of Columbia
66-
195+This is to Certify that this Office has reviewed the above- referenced draft
196+legislation and found it to be legally sufficient . If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to
197+call me at 724-5565. _________________________________ Benjamin E. Moskowitz
67198