Committee of the Whole & Transportation & the Environment Public Hearing

COUNCIL OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA COMMITTEE OF THE WHOLE PHIL MENDELSON, CHAIR AND COMMITTEE ON TRANSPORTATION & THE ENVIRONMENT MARY M. CHEH, CHAIR REVISED NOTICE OF JOINT PUBLIC HEARING ON Bill 24-66, the Safe Passage to School Expansion Act of 2021 October 12, 2021, at 9:00 AM Councilmember Cheh’s Facebook Page (facebook.com/cmmarycheh) DC Council Website (dccouncil.us) Council Channel 13 (Cable Television Providers) Office of Cable Television Website (entertainment.dc.gov) On October 12, 2021, Chairman Phil Mendelson, Chair of the Committee of the Whole, and Councilmember Mary M. Cheh, Chairperson of the Committee on Transportation and the Environment, will hold a joint public hearing on Bill 24-66, the Safe Passage to School Expansion Act of 2021. The hearing will begin at 9:00 AM and will be broadcast live on DC Council Channel 13 and streamed live at www.dccouncil.us, facebook.com/cmmarycheh, and entertainment.dc.gov. Bill 24-66 would establish an Office of Safe Passage, tasked with ensuring the safe passage of students as they travel to and from school, both during the school year and summer. The new office would develop ward-specific five-year strategic plans for the safe travel of students to and from school, collect data on student safety during school commutes, award grants to community-based organizations participating in the Safe Routes to School program, and provide recommendations on how the District can improve the safety of students as they travel to and from school. The legislation would also require the new Office to establish a Safe Routes to School program, which would designate 10 priority areas, establish safe routes to and from schools in those areas, and engage community-based organizations to hire and manage safe passage personnel to monitor these new safe routes. On March 11, 2020, Mayor Muriel Bowser issued the Declaration of Public Emergency: Coronavirus (COVID-19) and the Declaration of Public Health Emergency: Coronavirus (COVID- 19) due to the imminent threat to the health, safety, and welfare of District residents posed by the spread of the coronavirus. These orders require that the Council adapt the methods by which committees may hold public hearings and roundtables to comply with social distancing, large public gathering, and other public health and safety requirements. Therefore, this public hearing will be held remotely through the WebEx teleconferencing platform. The public is invited to testify or to submit written testimony, which will be made a part of the official record. Anyone wishing to testify should contact Ms. Aukima Benjamin, Staff Assistant to the Committee on Transportation and the Environment, at (202) 724-8062 or via e-mail at abenjamin@dccouncil.us; witnesses will receive information on how to join the hearing at that time. Witnesses who anticipate needing language interpretation, or requiring sign language interpretation, are requested to inform Ms. Benjamin of the need as soon as possible but no later than five business days before the roundtable, which is October 5, 2021. We will make every effort to fulfill timely requests, however requests received in less than five business days may not be fulfilled and alternatives may be offered. If you are unable to testify at the public hearing, written statements are encouraged and will be made a part of the official record; testimony may be submitted to abenjamin@dccouncil.us. The public may also leave voicemail testimony for the record by calling (202) 350-1344, which will be transcribed and made part of the hearing record. Members of the public leaving voicemail testimony should speak slowly and clearly, state their full name and the organization they represent, if any, and note the bill, roundtable, or agency that they are submitting testimony on. Members of the public are asked to not provide an e-mail, phone number, or other person contact information in voicemail testimony. The record will close at the end of the business day on October 26, 2021. This hearing notice has been revised to reflect the hearing being rescheduled for Tuesday, October 12th, from 9:00am – 3:00pm. Accordingly, the date by which members of the public must request language interpretation has been revised to October 5, 2021, and the date that the record will close has been extended to October 26, 2021. The hearing notice has also been revised to notice that the hearing will be broadcast on Channel 13, the Councilwebsite, and entertainment.dc.gov. 2