Committee Work

On Monday, November 16 at 3:00pm, Councilmember Elissa Silverman, Chairperson of the Committee on Labor and Workforce Development, will hold a public hearing before the Committee on B23-985 the Unemployment Benefits Extension Amendment Act of 2020. This Act will amend the District of Columbia Unemployment Compensation Act to qualify District workers for additional weeks of unemployment insurance and pandemic unemployment assistance benefits under the Extended Benefits program. A companion emergency measure was passed by the Council on October 20, 2020 (B23-983), and a temporary measure (B23-984) passed its first vote on that date.

Find the official copy of the hearing announcement here. Find a draft agenda and witness list here. 

Those who wish to watch live can tune in online via the DC Council Channel or TV Channel 13.

On Tuesday, October 27, 2020, at 10:00am, the Committee on Labor and Workforce Development will hold an additional meeting to consider and vote on the following measures:

• B23-309, “Medical Marijuana Program Patient Employment Protection Amendment Act of 2020”
• B23-500, “Unemployment Compensation Employer Classification Amendment Act of 2020”

The official hearing materials include:

• Agenda
• Draft Committee Print, B23-309 Medical Marijuana Program
• Committee Report, B23-309 Medical Marijuana Program
• Draft Committee Print, B23-500 Unemployment Compensation
• Committee Report, B23-500 Unemployment Compensation

The hearing can be viewed live via https://dccouncil.us or on DC Cable Channel 13.

On October 26, 2020 at 10:00am, Councilmember Elissa Silverman (I-At-Large), Chairperson of the Committee on Labor and Workforce Development, will host a Public Oversight Roundtable on Unemployment Insurance Programs in the District During the COVID-19 Pandemic. Public witnesses are welcome to sign up, and may use their phone or computer to participate in this virtual roundtable. The hearing will be available for live viewing on DC Cable Channel 13 and online at www.dccouncil.us.

Click here for the Official Hearing Notice and here for the final agenda and witness list. 

This UI Roundtable will focus on three topics: 

1. DC’s short-time compensation (or “shared work”) program.
2. Seamlessly transitioning claimants to additional weeks of benefits through PEUC and EB.
3. Clearing the PUA claims and payment backlog.

If you are unable to testify at the roundtable, written and voicemail statements will be accepted as part of the official record until Monday, November 9, 2020. Additional details on testifying below.

On Thursday, November 19 at 10:30am (note: this time has been changed from the previous start time of 10:00am) Councilmember Elissa Silverman (I-At-Large), Chairperson of the Committee on Labor and Workforce Development will host a public hearing before the Committee on B23-0436 First Source Community Accountability Amendment Act of 2019 and B23-0570 First Source Resident Employment Amendment Act of 2019.  

• Official Hearing Notice
• Summary: First Source Resident Employment Amendment Act of 2019
• Summary: First Source Community Accountability Amendment Act of 2019

Bill 23-436 would make updates and reforms to the First Source law, to provide the public with more information on projects and outcomes. Bill 23-570 would make improvements to the First Source law to increase the number of qualified District residents working on First Source projects, particularly for higher-skill jobs; improve the Department of Employment Services’ assistance to First Source contractors; and remove bureaucratic reporting requirements for contractors.

The hearing will be available for live viewing on DC Cable Channel 13 and online at www.dccouncil.us.

Those who wish to testify live must sign up using this form no later than 5:00pm on Tuesday, November 17, 2020. Additional details below. 

On Wednesday, September 16, 2020, Councilmember Elissa Silverman (I-At-Large), Chair of the Committee on Labor and Workforce Development held a Public Oversight Hearing on on the District’s unemployment compensation program during the COVID-19 pandemic. The Hearing aired on the DC Council's Live Stream channel and TV Channel 13. The official hearing announcement can be found here.

The government witness portion of the hearing with the Department of Employment Services (DOES) was reschedule for September 30 at 3:00pm. The hearing can be viewed on the DC Council's Live Stream channel and on TV Channel 13.

DC workers and others interested in submitting their thoughts or official testimony for the record can do so in two ways:

1. Written and voicemail statements submitted by email to [email protected] or by calling 202-455-0153.
2. Filling our our new online survey. You can choose to submit your survey responses as official testimony, or just use the survey to provide feedback to the Committee and Councilmember Silverman to inform and improve their work with the Department of Employment Services (DOES).

The deadline for survey responses and formal testimony submission is October 7, 2020.

The hearing agenda, list of witnesses, and testimonies can be found here and below.

On Wednesday, September 16, 2020, Councilmember Elissa Silverman (I-At-Large), Chair of the Committee on Labor and Workforce Development will hold a Public Oversight Hearing on on the District’s unemployment compensation program during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Hearing will air on the DC Council's Live Stream channel and TV Channel 13.

Those who wish to testify live must email the Committee at [email protected] by 5:00 p.m. on Monday, September 14, 2020. 

If you are unable to testify live, written and voicemail statements will be made a part of the official record. Statements should be submitted by email to [email protected] or by calling (202) 455-0153 by 5:00 p.m. on October 7, 2020 (this date has been extended from the original deadline of September 30).

A complete hearing announcement along with instructions for submitting live testimony, as well as written or phone testimony, can be found here and below.

On Tuesday, July 28, 2020, the Council passed the Protecting Businesses and Workers from COVID-19 Emergency Amendment Act of 2020. This bill was introduced on July 23, 2020 by Councilmember Elissa Silverman (I-At-Large) and is the first piece of legislation in which the Council has acted to protect workers during the coronavirus public health emergency. On September 22, 2020 the bill was passed by the Council and has been sent to the Mayor for her final signature. 

• Summary of the bill as amended (unofficial)
• Full text text of the bill as amended, with red line changes (unofficial)

On Thursday, July 9, 2020, Councilmember Elissa Silverman (I-At-Large), Chair of the Committee on Labor and Workforce Development held a Public Oversight Roundtable on the Paid Family Leave program. The Roundtable aired on the DC Council channel and TV Channel 13, and an archived recording can be found here. 

The Committee received presentations from both public witnesses and government witnesses from the Department of Employment Services (DOES). 

The agenda, witness list, and witness testimonies are included below:

• Draft Agenda and Witness List
• DOES Testimony, Director Unique Morris-Hughes
• Blotner, Joanna: Jews for Justice, DC Paid Family Leave Coalition
• Brown, Laura: First Shift Justice Project

Councilmember Elissa Silverman (I-At-Large), Chair of the Committee on Labor and Workforce Development, presented her Committee's FY 2021 budget recommendations to the Committee of the Whole on Monday, June 29, 2020.  

The Committee of the Whole meeting will be available for later viewing via dccouncil.us.

The Committee documents are below:

• Presentation slides

The Committee on Labor and Workforce Development held a meeting and vote on its Draft Report and Recommendations for the Fiscal Year 2021 Budget Request and Budget Support Act for Agencies under its purview on Wednesday, June 24, at 1:30pm.  

The Committee Mark-up meeting will be available for later viewing via dccouncil.us.

The Committee documents are below:

• Final FY 2021 Committee Report
• Attachment A – LWD Recommendations Operating
• Attachment B – BSA_Subtitle Legislative Text
• Attachment C – Hearing Agenda and Witness Testimony
• Final report with all attachments and signatures