WASHINGTON — The D.C. Council is scheduled to take its final vote Tuesday on the Guiding Renewable Interconnection and Distribution Amendment Act, a package its sponsor describes as the first major overhaul of utility and Public Service Commission law in the District in 25 years.
The bill, B26-0602, is listed for final reading on the non-consent portion of the agenda for the council’s 39th legislative meeting, which begins at noon or immediately after a Committee of the Whole meeting called for 11 a.m. An amendment from Councilmember Wendell Felder is also listed. Final reading is the second of two required council votes; bills the council passes then go to the mayor and, after signing, to Congress for review.
What the bill does
Councilmember Charles Allen, who chairs the Committee on Transportation and the Environment, laid out the committee’s version in a Nov. 5 memo to Chairman Phil Mendelson. He wrote that the bill folds in three other measures: the Utility Rates and Ratemaking Amendment Act, introduced by Councilmember Robert White and others; the Public Trust in Utility Regulation Act, introduced by Councilmember Janeese Lewis George, the city’s mayor-elect, and others; and the Retail Energy Market Consumer Protection Amendment Act, introduced by Mendelson and Allen.
“Taken together, its reforms will accelerate the creation of solar energy generation (both traditional rooftop solar and the newly allowed portable solar systems), strengthen the Commission’s ability to conduct effective oversight, improve grid resiliency, and better protect customers from rising costs and predatory practices,” Allen wrote. The committee held three hearings and heard from more than 120 public and government witnesses, according to the memo.
Allen’s memo makes the case on cost. It says average energy costs in the District rose nearly 70% between 2017 and 2025, and that for many low-income households in the region, energy takes up nearly 16% of income. Because the District is small and imports most of its electricity and gas, the memo says, it is “incredibly vulnerable to spikes in the regional electricity market, and better oversight of spending on electric and gas infrastructure is one of the few ways DC can actually lower utility bills for residents.”
The bill was introduced Feb. 24 by Allen and Councilmembers Matthew Frumin, Lewis George, Brianne Nadeau, Zachary Parker, Brooke Pinto and Robert White, and the committee held its hearing March 26, the memo says.
Other energy measures on the agenda
Two other bills from Allen’s committee are on the consent agenda for first reading. B26-0361, the Shine Safely Amendment Act, would end the sale of mercury-containing compact fluorescent lamps in the District, and one year after the bill takes effect would also bar pin-base CFLs and linear fluorescent tubes. Lamps already installed would not have to be removed, seven categories of specialty lamps without a mercury-free substitute are exempt, and the Department of Energy and Environment could seek civil penalties of up to $500 for a violation and up to $1,000 for later violations after a first warning, according to the memo.
B26-0697, introduced at the mayor’s request, would move nine reports from formal transmittal to the council to publication on DOEE’s website, reduce the frequency of six others and repeal 16 that the committee calls completed, obsolete or duplicative.
The council is also set to vote on emergency legislation putting e-bike and battery safety standards into effect immediately. The permanent Micromobility Fire Safety Standards Act, passed Sept. 22, is under congressional review with a projected law date of Dec. 19, the memo says.
The rest of the meeting
The agenda also lists a final vote on the Contracting and Procurement Reform Amendment Act (B26-0594), the RFK Campus Master Plan Approval Resolution (PR 26-810), first-reading votes on the RFK Campus Planning Amendment Act (B26-0625) and the Fair Share Housing Targets Act (B26-0556), and the Mayoral Transition Temporary Amendment Act (B26-0864), ahead of Lewis George’s swearing-in in January.
The Nightlife Noise Balance Amendment Act (B26-0369), which would change how the city measures and enforces noise from bars and music venues, is up for its first vote with a substitute amendment from Nadeau, the chair of the Committee on Public Works and Operations. The Inquisitor reported on the bill Sunday.
The council’s next legislative meeting is Nov. 17 at noon.
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