Criminal Justice (Policing)

The Safe Neighborhoods Amendment Act of 2025 establishes the Office of Neighborhood Engagement and Safety Agency (ONES), an independent agency to coordinate the District’s existing violence prevention efforts, including the Neighborhood Engagement and Safety Offices (NEAR Offices) created under the 2016 law. It creates a dedicated Office of Neighborhood Engagement and Safety Administration Fund, funded by District appropriations, grants, and public/private donations, to support program operations without annual budget restrictions. The bill amends several related laws to align with ONES’ structure, including updating roles for the Director (requiring 5+ years in violence prevention) and revising police recruitment and housing benefit provisions for first responders. This bill directly affects District agencies managing violence prevention, public safety funding, and police workforce programs.

This resolution urges the District of Columbia Mayor to prioritize specialized behavioral health professionals over police for mental health crises. It directly affects DC residents experiencing behavioral health emergencies and DC government agencies like the Office of Unified Communications (OUC) and Department of Behavioral Health (DBH). Key provisions include improving call diversion to DBH helplines (targeting 90% of calls answered within 15-20 seconds by 2027), implementing "warm handoff" follow-ups, expanding mobile crisis teams to respond within 5-9 minutes, and developing community-based crisis care options to reduce hospitalizations. The resolution emphasizes trauma-informed care and community input, aiming to align behavioral health crisis response with the urgency of physical health emergencies.

This bill temporarily expands opportunities for experienced first responders to remain in their roles. It allows retired Metropolitan Police Department lieutenants to be rehired under a new "Senior police lieutenant" category with pay capped at Class 5, Step 3 levels (no longevity pay), and removes the mandatory retirement age of 60 for MPD and Fire and Emergency Medical Services personnel. This gives departments discretion to retain staff beyond age 60 instead of requiring automatic retirement. The changes are effective for 225 days and aim to address retention challenges for senior first responders.

This resolution declares an emergency to amend two existing laws affecting District of Columbia public safety staffing. It would expand the Metropolitan Police Department's Senior Officer Program to allow rehiring of retired lieutenants (previously excluded) and eliminate the mandatory retirement age of 60 for both police officers and Fire and Emergency Medical Services workers. These changes aim to retain experienced personnel by enabling rehiring of qualified lieutenants and extending careers for seasoned staff. The resolution cites current staffing shortages (MPD at 3,200 officers vs. a target of 4,000) as justification for expedited action. It does not create new law but seeks to modify existing retirement and redeployment provisions.

This resolution declares an emergency to maintain temporary provisions from expired legislation until permanent law takes effect. It specifically preserves two key technical changes: expanding the Police Complaints Board membership and allowing the Executive Director to initiate complaints about officer misconduct (like failure to intervene in excessive force), while also clarifying age-related reporting requirements for crime victims. The resolution prevents a legal gap between the expiration of temporary legislation (set to end November 2025) and the implementation of permanent law (section 105 of D.C. Law 24-345). It directly affects how police misconduct complaints are handled and processed by the Office of Police Complaints.