D.C. Mayor Muriel E. Bowser (D) on Tuesday submitted a plan to the D.C. Council detailing her plan to split up the Department of Consumer and Regulatory Affairs (DCRA) into two separate agencies — marking the first step of a transition that the city’s legislative branch has long pushed for despite Bowser’s opposition.
The council voted unanimously last year to separate the agency — which is tasked with enforcing code compliance, regulating construction and issuing construction permits, among other responsibilities — in hopes of shoring up its services in the face of years of criticism from residents, businesses and the council.
The bill, introduced by D.C. Council Chairman Phil Mendelson (D), proposed moving responsibilities like construction compliance, issuing permits and residential property maintenance activities to a new Department of Buildings, while redesignating the remaining portion of the DCRA as the Department of Licensing and Consumer Protection.
