DC Councilmember Brianne Nadeau on Tuesday reintroduced legislation that would protect street vendors who do not hold a license from criminalization.
The Ward 1 councilmember initially introduced the bill to the DC Council in 2020, but it was not approved.
Other councilmembers supporting the bill are Kenyan McDuffie (Ward 5), Charles Allen (Ward 6), Robert White (At-large), Christina Henderson (At-large), Mary Cheh (Ward 3), Anita Bonds (At-large), Janeese Lewis George (Ward 4), and Vincent Gray (Ward 7).
Titled the “Street Vending Decriminalization Amendment Act of 2021,” the legislation stipulates eliminating criminal penalties for unlicensed vending on the street.
“These vendors have been trying to cut through red tape to become licensed for years,” Nadeau stated in a release last year. “While we on the Council continue efforts to simplify that process, interactions between vendors and police are escalating. The vendors share their culture and food with us, and I want to keep them in our communities and keep them safe. During the pandemic and recovery, we should especially ensure that they are able to maintain their traditional source of income.”
Nadeau’s new initiative also includes a measure to establish special zones designated for sidewalk vendors to legally operate: The Sidewalk Vending Zones Amendment Act of 2021, which aims at amending the District’s Vending Regulations Act of 2009. It also gives vendors the right to request new sidewalk vending zones from the DC mayor.
Councilmembers White, Lewis George, Silverman, Gray, and McDuffie co-introduced the bill along with Nadeau. The bill includes a provision to provide amnesty, retroactive up to 5 years, for unpaid civil citations related to vendors who receive a license or register for a sidewalk vending zone.
“Unlicensed vending is not a public safety issue and our response should not be to send armed police officers to enforce these regulations. I want this legislation to begin to help sidewalk vendors feel safe again in their own community,” Nadeau about the bill in a statement in October 2020.