April 20, 2022

Ward 3 Update: The Budget Wraps Up

Dear Neighbors,

The Council hearings on the Mayor's budget proposal have concluded. If
you'd like to watch the hearing for any particular agency, all recordings
are available [1]here. The next steps in the Council's process are
committee markups, a budget work session, and then the final votes. Here
are the key dates:
* Budget markups concluded, on Wednesday, April 20th: Committees on
Health, Human Services, Recreation, Libraries & Youth Affairs, Housing &
Executive Administration, and Government Operations & Facilities
* Budget markups to come, on Thursday, April 21st: Committees on Labor &
Workforce Development, Business & Economic Development, Transportation &
the Environment, Judiciary & Public Safety, and the Committee of the Whole
* Wednesday, April 27th: Budget Work Session
* Tuesday, May 10th: First Budget Vote
* Tuesday, May 24th: Second Budget Vote

Full details and the entire budget schedule are available [2]here.

I am very proud of the investments my committee is making in our
transportation infrastructure, the environment, and health services. I look
forward to sharing more details as they are finalized.

Regards,

Mary

I was delighted to throw out the first pitch at Capital City Little
League's opening day on Saturday, April 2nd along with Mayor Bowser and
Councilmember Silverman.

Short-Term Rental Update

The Department of Consumer and Regulatory Affairs (DCRA) announced that it
has extended the application grace period for Short-Term Rental Licenses to
June 9, 2022.

After the Council passed the [3]Short-Term Rental Regulation and Affordable
Housing Protection Act of 2018, DCRA began accepting applications for
Short-Term Rental Licenses on January 10, 2022. To give short-term rental
hosts enough time to get the required documentation and obtain licenses, a
90-day grace period was implemented, with an initial deadline of Sunday,
April 10, 2022.

To assist hosts who have not yet obtained their licenses, and to allow them
to confirm eligibility for the Homestead Deduction or obtain a Certificate
of Clean Hands from the DC Office of Tax and Revenue (OTR), DCRA has
extended the grace period for an additional 60 days until June 9, 2022.

For more information, visit [4]DCRA's website.

What Lawyers Can Do To Prevent Evictions

I was happy to speak at a webinar hosted by the American Bar Association
about the [5]Eviction Record Sealing Authority Amendment Act of 2021, which
I introduced.

The legislation provides the Superior Court of the District of Columbia the
ability to seal eviction records in certain circumstances. Specifically,
the legislation requires that the Court seal eviction records where the
Court did not find for the landlord or the landlord withdrew their claim.
Additionally, it requires that the Court seal all other eviction records
after three years and authorizes the Court to seal certain eviction records
upon motion by the defendant. That legislation passed the Council in March,
and is expected to become law in June. I look forward to its
implementation.

To watch the recording of the webinar, [6]click here.

Van Ness Commercial Corridor Project Meeting

DDOT will host a public meeting about the Van Ness Commercial Corridor
Project this Saturday, April 23rd, from 10am-1pm. The meeting will be held
outdoors at the University of District of Columbia, 4200 Connecticut Avenue
NW, in front of the Student Center. For more information, [7]click here,
and to register, [8]click here.

Forest Hills Connection Survey

Do you live in an apartment building? Through a range of questions, the
Forest Hills Connection is collecting data and asking residents about their
experiences living in multi-unit buildings and their management. Click the
button below to participate and share your input.

[9]Click Here to Take the Survey

Eco Market Day

[10]

This event looks to be fun and informative, and it's free!

A Quick Correction

In the Ward 3 Update sent on Wednesday, April 6th, the introductory
paragraph stated that "Special trees have a diameter of 44 to 100 inches,
and heritage trees have a diameter of 100 inches or more." Those
measurements actually refer to the circumference of the tree, not the
diameter. Special trees have a circumference of 44 to 100 inches, and
heritage trees have a circumference of 100 inches or more.

In The News

[11]This DC car has more than $10,000 of fines, so why is it still on the
road?

There are so many cars that have unpaid tickets in the District, amounting
to thousands and thousands of dollars. The District, and in particular the
Department of Public Works, has been indifferent to enforcing these fines
through booting and towing. The problem is not just the loss of revenue for
the District, but dangerous drivers, who can engage in harmful driving
behaviors like running red lights and speeding, facing no consequences.

"DC Councilmember Mary Cheh, who also chairs the DC Council’s Committee on
Transportation and the Environment, held a hearing regarding the
effectiveness of vehicular booting in D.C. in December.

Cheh maintains the effort is understaffed and underfunded.

Cheh said she has asked for more people to be on D.C. DPW’s booting and
towing team. She said the team only had six employees and D.C. Mayor Muriel
Bowser had proposed to increase staffing to nine people in her most recent
budget proposal.

But, Cheh said she is hopeful they can add even more staffers than that.

'The department had said at a hearing I had that they thought they could
use 13,' she said. 'So, I'm going to find money in the budget and make it
13.'"

To watch the full hearing, [12]click here.

[13]D.C. Council Declares April 2022 as "Giant Panda Month" in Washington,
D.C.

"On April 5, the D.C. Council passed a Ceremonial Resolution declaring
April 2022, 'Giant Panda Month' in recognition and celebration of the 50th
anniversary of the Smithsonian’s National Zoo and Conservation Biology
Institute’s giant panda conservation program and the arrival of the first
pair of giant pandas to the Zoo in April 1972, a seminal moment for the
Smithsonian and for Washington, D.C. The Ceremonial Resolution was
introduced by Councilmember Mary Cheh."

To read the full article, click on the headline

Our Office is Open!

Connect with our staff - While Councilmember Cheh's physical office is
closed during the public health emergency, she and her staff are
teleworking and will remain accessible for residents.

You may continue to reach us via [14]email or phone through our main line
at (202) 724-8062 with legislative ideas, budget requests, and constituent
services requests.

[15]Facebook [16]Twitter [17]marycheh.com

FOLLOW MARY

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Mary Cheh
Mary Cheh Ward 3
1350 Pennsylvania Avenue NWSuite 108
Washington, DC 20004
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