Bill Summary – FastDemocracy

                                                                   _________________________

                                                                  Councilmember Kenyan McDuffie

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                                               A BILL

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                     IN THE COUNCIL OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA

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                                      ____________________

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 To amend Title 28 of the District of Columbia Official Code to prohibit service charges from

       being included in consideration of sales in relation to the calculation of leases and to

       define the fair practices of service charges for consumer protection; to amend Chapter 20

       of Title 47 of the District of Columbia Official Code to include the definition of a service

       charge and to exclude service charges from consideration of gross receipts; to amend the

       Fair Meals Delivery Act of 2022 to require that third party delivery platforms does not

       limit a restaurant from search results of a customer within 4 miles, does not limit the

       availability of delivery drivers from the third party platform to the restaurant and

       provides for food delivery workers access to restroom facilities, and to require a study of

       the working conditions of food delivery workers; The Minimum Wage Act Revision Act

       of 1992 as amended by the District of Columbia Tip Credit Elimination Act of 2022 to

       establish a new timeline for the elimination of tipped credit minimum wage and to

       establish a education program by the Mayor on the new wages for both consumers and

       businesses.

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        BE IT ENACTED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA, That this

 act may be cited as the “Workers and Restaurants Are Priorities Act of 2023”.

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        Sec. 2 Definitions.

        Sec. 3 Section 28 of the District of Columbia Official Code is amended as follows:

        a new paragraph (28:2A-222) to read as follows:

                        “(28:2A-222) “Absent any language to the contrary in a lease for a

 commercial tenancy, service charges shall not constitute sales for the purposes of calculating

 percentage or other rent for the property leased. If there is any ambiguity in lease language

 concerning the inclusion of service charges in calculating rent payable for commercial property

 leased, there shall be a presumption that service fees are not to be included in the calculation. ”.

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                                 (a) For the purpose of this paragraph, the term “service charge”

 means any mandatory fee paid as a percentage of the total cost of the food or beverages for

 consumption on the premises of the vendor, if the food or beverages are served to a group of not

 more than 10 persons, and the fee is used to pay base wages of the employees of the vendor.

        Sec. 3.;

                          (A) Section 28-3904 of the District of Columbia Official Code is amended

                             by adding a new subsection (nn) to read as follows:

                          “(nn)” The imposition of a service charge by a restaurant or bar, imposed

        as a percentage of sales, shall not be an unfair or deceptive trade practice, provided the

        consumer is advised of the charge in advance of ordering food or beverages, verbally, by

        signage in the establishment reasonably visible upon entry to the establishment or on any

        website of the establishment.”

        Sec 4.

                   Section 47-2001(g) of the District of Columbia Official Code is amended as by

 adding a new paragraphs (5) to read as follows:

                                 (5)(A) “Service Charge” means any mandatory charge paid as a

 percentage of the total cost of the food or beverages for consumption on the premises of the

 vendor, if the food or beverages are served to a group of not more than 10 persons, and the

 charge is used to pay base wages of the employees of the vendor.

                                 (B) For the purpose of this paragraph, gross receipts shall not

 include a service charge, charged to any person as a percentage, not in excess of 22%, of food

 and drink sold and subject to tax pursuant to DC Code § 47–2002(a)(3).

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         Sec. 5. The Fair Meals Delivery Act of 2022, effective March 10, 2023 (D.C. Law 24-

 292; D.C. Official Code § 48-651 et seq.), is amended as follows:

         (a) Section 2 (D.C. Official Code § 48-651) is amended by adding a new paragraph (2A)

             to read as follows:

                 “(2A) “Food delivery worker” means any natural person or any organization

                 composed of no more than one natural person, whether or not incorporated or

                 employing a trade name, who is hired, retained, or engaged as an independent

                 contractor by a third-party meal delivery platform.”

         (b) Section 3 (D.C. Official Code § 48-652) is amended by adding new subsection (e),

 (f), and (g) to read as follows:

                 “(e) Any agreement that a third-party meal delivery platform enters into with a

                 restaurant must contain a provision allowing a food delivery worker to use the

                 restroom facilities of the restaurant when performing a delivery or pickup service

                 at the restaurant.

                 “(f) A third-party meal delivery platform shall not exclude any restaurant with

 whom the third-party delivery platform has an agreement from the search results of a customer

 within 4 miles of a restaurant.”

                 “(g) A third-party meal delivery platform shall not reduce the number of delivery

 drivers available to deliver an online order from a restaurant with whom the third-party delivery

 platform has an agreement. Nothing in this section shall prohibit a third-party delivery platform

 from offering priority delivery services for a fee.”.

         (b) Section 7 (D.C. Official Code § 48-656) is amended as follows:

                 (1) A new subsection (c) is added to read as follows:

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  “The Deputy Mayor for Planning and Economic Development shall study the

  working conditions for food delivery workers and issue a report to the Council of

  the District of Columbia no later than December 31, 2023. In conducting such

  study, the Deputy Mayor may coordinate with any other agency, organization, or

  office that can assist in such study. Such study shall include, at minimum,

  consideration of the pay food delivery workers receive and the methods by which

  such pay is determined, the total income food delivery workers earn, the expenses

  of such workers, the equipment required to perform their work, the hours of such

  workers, the average mileage of a trip, the mode of travel used by such workers,

  the safety conditions of such workers, and such other topics as the department

 deems appropriate. In furtherance of such study, the Deputy Mayor may request

 or issue subpoenas for the production of data, documents, and other information

 from a third-party meal delivery platform relating to food delivery workers that

  include, but are not limited to, worker identifiers, information about the times that

 such workers are available to work for such third-party meal delivery platform,

 the mode of transportation such workers use, how trips are offered or assigned to

 food delivery workers, the data such service maintains relating to the trips of such

 workers, the compensation such workers receive from such third-party food meal

 delivery platform, any gratuities such workers receive, information relating to

 both completed and cancelled trips, agreements with or policies covering such

 workers, contact information of such workers, information relating to the setting

 of fees paid by food service establishments and consumers, and any other

 information deemed relevant by the Deputy Mayor.”

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         Sec. 6 The Minimum Wage Act Revision Act of 1992, effective March 25, 1993 (D.C.

 Law 9–248; D.C. Official Code § 32–1003):

         (a) Section (f)(5), (f)(6), (f)(7) and (f)(8) are repealed.

         (b) New subsections (f)(9) and (f)(10) added to be read as follows:

         “(f)(10) Except as provided in subsections (h) and (i) of this section, as of July 1, 2025,

 the tipped minimum wage shall be not less than the minimum wage as set by subtitle (a) of this

 title, with tips on top.

         “(f)(10) “Commencing October 1, 2023, there shall be a public education campaign to

 educate consumers and workers concerning changes to the tipped wage compensation system in

 the District of Columbia, including the elimination of the tip credit, that service charges are the

 property of businesses and the desirability of continuation of tipping practices under the new

 wage models implemented as a result of the passage and effectiveness of the District of

 Columbia Tip Credit Elimination Act of 2022. The campaign shall be implemented by the Mayor

 or the Mayor’s designee.”

         Sec. 8. Fiscal impact statement.

         The Council adopts the fiscal impact statement in the committee report as the fiscal

 impact statement required by section 4a of the General Legislative Procedures Act of 1975,

 approved October 16, 2006 (120 Stat. 2038; D.C. Official Code § 1-301.47a).

         Sec. 9. Effective date.

         This act shall take effect following approval by the Mayor (or in the event of veto by the

 Mayor, action by the Council to override the veto), a 30-day period of congressional review as

 provided in section 602(c)(1) of the District of Columbia Home Rule Act, approved December

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 24, 1973, (87 Stat. 813; D.C. Official Code § 1-206.02(c)(1)), and publication in the District of

 Columbia Register.

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