City Council hearings/roundtables

Upcoming City Council events include:

• The Performance of the HIV/AIDS, Hepatitis, STD, and Tuberculosis Administration:   The Committee on Health (CM Catania, At-large, chair) is holding this public oversight roundtable on December 17 at 10:00 am.   The purpose of this roundtable is to review the performance of the HIV/AIDS, Hepatitis, STD, and Tuberculosis Administration (HAHSTA) in facilitating and monitoring the delivery of HIV/AIDS services to District residents.   The roundtable is open to the public but only invited witnesses will be permitted to provide oral statements.   Public comments are encouraged in writing; details about submitting comments and the roundtable are in the hearing notice.
• Utility Reliability in the District of Columbia public oversight roundtable:   The Committee on Public Services and Consumer Affairs (CM Bowser, Ward 4, chair) is holding this roundtable on January 23 at 10:00 am in the Council Chamber.   The purpose of the roundtable is to hear from residents and others about the quality of regulated utilities in the city; regulated utilities include Verizon, Washington Gas, and PEPCO.   Details about the hearing, including how to register to testify and what information the committee is most interested in hearing from residents about, is in the hearing notice.

ANC vacancy bill hearing rescheduled

The hearing for B18-324, "Advisory Neighborhood Commission Vacancy Amendment Act of 2009", has been rescheduled by the Committee on Aging and Community Affairs (CM Alexander, Ward 7, chair).   The new date and time are November 19 at 6:00 pm in Room 412 of the JAWB.   This is rescheduled from an earlier date.   Details in hearing notice.

Those concerned with the work of these community-based elected officials and the role ANCs play in local democracy should comment on this bill.

PEPCO proposes rate and fee increases; comment now to prevent these changes

The DC Public Service Commission has announced a series of public meetings to get feedback on the PEPCO proposal to increase rates and charges for electric service in the District.

The two remaining meetings are:

• Thursday, November 19 at 6:30 pm at Hillcrest Recreation Center (3100 Denver St SE)
• Friday, November 20 at 10:00 am at D.C. Public Service Commission (1333 H St NW, Hearing Room 7th Floor East Tower)

Organizations that provide emergency assistance, including for electric bills, should consider sharing aggregated data about client needs to demonstrate the negative impact a rate and fee increase would have on low- and moderate-income residents.   Residents should also consider submitting comments either in person or in writing to the Commission.