Human Services Public Hearing

Council of the District of Columbia COMMITTEE ON HUMAN SERVICES NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING 1350 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20004 COUNCILMEMBER BRIANNE K. NADEAU, CHAIRPERSON COMMITTEE ON HUMAN SERVICES ANNOUNCES A PUBLIC HEARING ON Bill 24-0120, The “Emergency Rental Assistance Reform Amendment Act of 2021,” Bill 24-0600, The “Give SNAP A Raise Amendment Act of 2022,” and Bill 24-0713, The “Flexible Rent Subsidy Pilot Program Extension Amendment Act Of 2022” Thursday, April 28, 2022, 10 a.m. Virtual Public Hearing via Zoom Streamed live at https://www.brianneknadeau.com/committee On Thursday, April 28, 2022, Councilmember Brianne K. Nadeau, Chairperson of the Committee on Human Services, will convene a public hearing to consider Bill 24-0120, the “Emergency Rental Assistance Reform Amendment Act of 2021,” Bill 24-0600, the “Give SNAP a Raise Amendment act of 2022,” and Bill 24-0713, the “Flexible Rent Subsidy Pilot Program Extension Amendment Act of 2022.” The hearing will be held virtually via the Zoom platform beginning at 10:00 a.m. The stated purpose of B24-0120, the “Emergency Rental Assistance Reform Amendment Act of 2021,” is to amend the “Homeless Services Reform Act of 2005” to reform the Emergency Rental Assistance Program (“ERAP”) to aid tenants by reducing administrative barriers to ERAP payments for tenants in need. The proposed measure would set the income limit for eligibility to 40% of area-median income to align the program with the Homeless Services Reform Amendment Act of 2005, streamline documentation requirements to make it less burdensome for applicants, increase the maximum allowable payment to reflect current rental costs in the District, and grant the Department of Human Services (“DHS”) the authority to waive a rule that restricts the number of months that ERAP funds may cover for rent arrearages during a public health emergency. 1 The stated purpose of B24-0600, the “Give SNAP a Raise Amendment Act of 2022” is to increase the minimum monthly Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (“SNAP”) payment guaranteed to all participants, while providing local funds to increase SNAP benefits to match food expenses under the Low-Cost Food Plan set by the Food and Nutrition Service at USDA. The proposed measure would establish a local supplement to SNAP benefits to base allotment calculations on the USDA’s Low-Cost Food Plan, a step up from Thrifty, which offers more generous food cost and caloric intake assumptions. It would also increase the monthly minimum SNAP allotment from a flat $30 to 15% of the maximum allotment for a particular family. Finally, the bill would update nomenclature in the D.C. Code to strike outdated references to “food stamps,” and replace them with “SNAP” instead. Increasing SNAP benefits will directly assist with food insecurity in the District, and by extension poverty and health outcomes. The stated purpose of B24-0713 is to extend the Flexible Rent Subsidy Pilot Program to September 30, 2026. The Flexible Rent Subsidy Pilot Program (“DC Flex”) was established by adding Section 31c to the Homeless Services Reform Act of 2005, effective October 22, 2005 (D.C. Law 16-35; D.C. Official Code § 4-751.01 et seq.), in the Fiscal Year 2017 Budget Support Act of 2016. DC Flex, administered by DHS, subsidizes the cost of monthly rent for families receiving, or eligible to receive, Continuum of Care services. DC Flex was set to expire on September 30, 2021. After conferring with DHS, this Committee determined that it is important that the District extend the expiration date of DC Flex to September 30, 2026, so that it can implement a more thoughtful phase out of the program if that is determined to the best course of action. The Council extended DC Flex’s expiration date to September 30, 2026 on an emergency and temporary basis. This legislation would make this extension permanent, eliminating the need for regular emergency and temporary measures. The Committee invites the public to testify or to submit written testimony. Anyone wishing to testify at the hearing should complete the witness form at https://www.brianneknadeau.com/testify or call the Committee on Human Services at 202-724-4353 by the close of business on Friday, April 22, 2022. Witnesses who anticipate needing language interpretation, or who anticipate requiring sign language interpretation, are requested to inform the Human Services Committee office of the need as soon as possible, but no later than five (5) business days before the proceeding. We will make every effort to fulfill timely requests, but requests received less than five (5) business days in advance may not be fulfilled, and alternatives may be offered. Representatives of organization will be allowed a maximum of five minutes for oral testimony, and individuals (and any subsequent representatives of the same organizations) will be allowed a maximum of three minutes. Witnesses are encouraged to submit a copy of their testimony electronically to humanservices@dccouncil.us in advance of the hearing. For witnesses who are unable to testify at the hearing, written statements will be made part of the official record. Copies of written statements should be submitted either to the Committee at humanservices@dccouncil.us or to Nyasha Smith, Secretary to the Council, 1350 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W., Suite 5, Washington, D.C. 20004. Additionally, voicemail testimony can be provided for the record by calling the Committee’s unique voicemail number at 202-570-4281. At 2 the beginning of the message, please state and spell your name, provide the name of the organization you are representing and title (if any), the topic of your testimony, and then begin your testimony. The record will close for all forms of testimony at the end of the business day on Thursday, May 5, 2022. 3