DC Council Legislative Meeting - September 22, 2026

The Council of the District of Columbia met in an additional legislative session of Council Period 26 on Tuesday, September 22, 2026. Chairman Phil Mendelson called the meeting to order at 2:01 p.m. in Room 500 of the John A. Wilson Building; a quorum was present. The council handled consent-agenda removals, first-reading bills, a committee-membership resolution, and emergency legislation. It adjourned at 4:09 p.m.; the next scheduled meeting is October 6, 2026.

Consent Agenda Removals

• The chair removed Bill 26-427 (Cybersecurity and Accountability Act of 2026), Bill 26-244 (Micromobility Fire Safety Standards Act), and Bill 26-16 (Strategic Parking Enforcement Enhancement Act of 2026) from the consent agenda. The transcript records no separate vote on Bill 26-427.
• Bill 26-244 (Micromobility Fire Safety Standards Act): A committee amendment updated the certification-body definition to Global Accreditation Cooperation Incorporated, the successor to the International Accreditation Forum; corrected the battery standard reference from EN5064 to EN50604; required testing by a certification body rather than only a nationally recognized testing laboratory; made conforming changes to the electric mobility device definition; excluded motorized bicycles from the District motor vehicle definition; and gave shared fleet operators a six-month alternative to test rental or lease electric bicycles to the UL 2849 standard. The amendment and the bill as amended were adopted unanimously.
• Bill 26-16 (Strategic Parking Enforcement Enhancement Act of 2026): Reported from the Committee on Public Works and Operations. Councilmember Trayon White opposed it, saying residents are 'killed by the size and number' of parking fees, restaurants report aggressive ticketing, and the city took in $60 million from parking enforcement last year. Councilmember Silverman said a future review was important, and Councilmember Lewis George said a pilot would be more prudent. The bill was approved on first reading; Councilmember Felder was recorded as no, and Councilmembers Parker and Henderson were recorded as present.

Discussion Items

• Bill 26-436 (Fair Initiatives Lend Transparency to Every Resident Amendment Act of 2026): Councilmember Bonds described the amendment in the nature of a substitute as strengthening the initiative process through a single-subject requirement, early fiscal impact statements, defined review timelines, and safeguards; the earlier badge requirement for petition circulators was removed. Councilmember Allen moved an oral amendment, accepted without objection, to strike language requiring the Board of Elections to suspend work and toll deadlines when a lawsuit challenges an initiative. Allen said the provision could be weaponized. Parker opposed the bill, saying it would make it harder for the public to use initiatives. Felder supported it, emphasizing voter clarity and fiscal transparency. Henderson supported the single-subject requirement and cited Initiative 83 and special-election turnout data (11% in 2013 and 16.3% in 2015) as concerns. Silverman opposed the bill, said he preferred an indirect initiative process, and would ask counsel whether a Home Rule Charter change is required. Frumin supported the substitute, saying it improved the process even though it did not fix every problem. Robert White supported it. Mendelson said the bill does not go far enough but urged opponents to support it. The substitute, as amended, was approved, and the bill as amended was approved; Parker and Silverman were recorded as no and Lewis George as present.
• Bill 26-547 (Posthumous Care Modernization Amendment Act of 2026): Councilmember Henderson moved a technical amendment to address DC Health concerns. It excludes alkaline hydrolysis products from the definition of human remains and replaces references to 'resimation' with 'alkaline hydrolysis.' The amendment and bill as amended passed unanimously.
• PR 26-789 (Committee Membership Amendment Resolution of 2026): The council appointed Councilmember Silverman to the Committees on Executive Administration and Labor; Judiciary and Public Safety; Public Works and Operations; Transportation and the Environment; and Youth Affairs. Silverman thanked voters and introduced her staff. Councilmembers Pinto and Nadeau welcomed her; Nadeau requested her service on Public Works and Operations. The resolution passed unanimously.

Emergency Legislation

• FY2027 bond issuance (PR 26-802 and PR 26-803): Unanimously approved, authorizing the District to issue up to $2 billion in aggregate principal for income tax-secured revenue bonds, general obligation bonds, and bond anticipation notes for FY2027 capital projects.
• Food and Friends property tax exemption (PR 26-786 and Bill 26-780): Unanimously approved. The chair clarified the emergency bill provides a 100 percent property tax exemption, not 97 percent, and mirrors permanent legislation that had gone through first reading earlier in the meeting.
• Peer-to-peer car sharing rental sales tax clarification (PR 26-790 and Bill 26-785): Unanimously approved to maintain the status quo for peer-to-peer car sharing rentals under the District rental car sales tax, including rentals by operators with fewer than five vehicles, before the rental car tax rises to 12 percent.
• Ballpark bonds loan repayment (PR 26-785 and Bill 26-778): Unanimously approved. It directs FY27 sports facilities fee revenue to the ballpark preservation and improvement fund for the same purposes currently in law, facilitating repayment of ballpark early-redemption borrowing and RFK project borrowing after the RFK Campus Infrastructure Fund was omitted from the FY27 enterprise agency list.
• Community Schools Task Force (PR 26-791 and Bill 26-787): Approved, with Councilmember Parker recorded as no. The emergency measure permits appointment of non-District residents with relevant expertise to the task force so it can meet its February 28, 2027 reporting deadline before the Mayor's FY28 budget submission.
• Substance Use and Targeted Outreach Grants (PR 26-793 and Bill 26-791): Councilmember Nadeau moved emergency legislation requiring the Department of Behavioral Health to issue FY27 grants to the same organizations that held FY26 targeted outreach grants at specified sites, extend FY26 awards before expiration, and allow additional locations. Her technical amendment changed 'continue grants' to 'reissue grants' and corrected the King Greenleaf Recreation Center address. Councilmember Henderson offered an amendment to create a shorter bridge using opioid abatement funds until the permanent place-based program designates new sites, with at least one high-need site in each current ward, but she withdrew it, saying she might return later with a directive for additional opioid abatement fund sites. Henderson cited about $21 million in the opioid fund and roughly $1.7 million for the existing sites. Pinto cited a 51 percent reduction in nonfatal overdoses at the T Street site and supported continuity. Frumin stressed that grants should not continue in perpetuity, and Bonds suggested a 90-120 day continuation. The bill was approved; Henderson and Bonds were recorded as no.
• Duke District BID grant making (PR 26-792 and Bill 26-789): Approved, with Councilmember Felder recorded as no. The measure provides $1 million in FY27 seed funding for a new Greater U Street and Shaw BID, called the Duke District in honor of Duke Ellington, after organizers met the petition threshold. Nadeau said she would introduce permanent legislation to formally establish the BID in coming days. Pinto and Frumin supported it; Frumin urged support for BIDs in less-resourced areas too. Felder opposed, saying the BID is not yet formally established and due diligence was needed.
• Broadband price transparency regulation (PR 26-787 and Bill 26-790): Approved, with Councilmembers Bonds and Henderson recorded as no. Nadeau explained the emergency bill provides a narrower-than-requested exception from the newly enumerated unlawful practices under the Enhancing Consumer Protection Procedures Amendment Act for broadband providers already subject to FCC 'nutrition label' price transparency requirements.

Key Outcomes

• First-reading bills approved: Bill 26-244, Bill 26-16, Bill 26-436, and Bill 26-547, with recorded opposition and present votes noted above.
• Emergency declarations and underlying measures approved for bond issuance, Food and Friends, peer-to-peer car sharing, ballpark bonds, community schools task force, substance use outreach grants, Duke District BID, and broadband price transparency.
• Councilmember Henderson withdrew her substance-use amendment and left open the possibility of a future opioid abatement fund directive for additional high-need sites.
• Councilmember Silverman was appointed to five committees for Council Period 26.
• The council adjourned at 4:09 p.m.; the next scheduled meeting is October 6, 2026.