District of ColumbiaB26-0206Council Period 26 (2025-2026)HouseWALLET

Certified Business Enterprise Program Compliance and Enforcement Support Emergency Amendment Act of 2025

Sponsored By: Phil Mendelson (Democratic)

Became Law

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Bill Overview

Analyzed Economic Effects

6 provisions identified: 0 benefits, 0 costs, 6 mixed.

Revocation: 36-month bar, early return

Beginning March 1, 2025, if your certification is revoked, you cannot apply again for 36 months after the revocation is final. You can ask the Department to reissue your certification sooner or remove a suspension if it serves the District’s interest, protects health and safety, and you show the problems are fixed. If certification is reissued, the 36‑month bar ends.

Hearings, deadlines, and public posting

Beginning March 1, 2025, before a fine or a change to certification, the Department must send a notice of determination with the reasons, any proposed penalty, and how to ask for a hearing. You have 10 days after you receive the notice to request a hearing; if you do not, the action is final and you waive judicial review. At a hearing, the Department must prove the violation by a preponderance of the evidence. The Office of Administrative Hearings’ decision is the final administrative decision before court review. Final suspensions or revocations must be posted on the Department’s website.

How to file and track complaints

Beginning March 1, 2025, any person can file a complaint. A formal complaint must be written, sworn, and notarized. Informal complaints can be made in person, by email, by phone, or through the Department’s hotline, which the Department must run. The Department must investigate all complaints unless it dismisses one as frivolous or without merit; for a dismissed formal complaint, it must write a report with the complainant’s contact details and its reasons. The Department must keep a record of all formal complaints with the accused person’s name, the date, and a description. After an investigation, the Department decides what enforcement action, if any, to take.

Immediate suspension for safety risks

Beginning March 1, 2025, the Department can suspend certification right away if it finds an imminent danger to health, safety, or welfare. You have 14 days to request a hearing. If you ask in time, the Office must hold the hearing within 14 days and issue a decision within 14 days after the record closes.

Joint ventures must match work share

Beginning March 1, 2025, each certified partner in a certified joint venture must self‑perform at least its ownership share of the work using its own staff and resources. If the joint venture subcontracts, at least 35% of the subcontracted work must go to certified business enterprises.

New rules for certified local businesses

Beginning March 1, 2025, a disadvantaged owner must hold at least 51% of the business and have personal net worth at or below the U.S. DOT limit (49 C.F.R. § 26.68). The law defines “independently owned and operated” as daily control without limits from another owner or nonprofit with a money interest. A firm can qualify if it is independently run; or is over 50% owned, operated, and controlled by a District-based enterprise or nonprofit; or is a non‑District firm that is over 50% owned by District residents. It also creates an “equity impact enterprise” label for firms that are resident‑owned, small, and disadvantaged.

Sponsors & Cosponsors

Sponsor

Phil Mendelson
Democratic • House

Cosponsors

There are no cosponsors for this bill.

Roll Call Votes

All Roll Calls

Yes: 12 • No: 0

House vote • 5/6/2025

Final Reading