COUNCIL OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA
OFFICE OF COUNCILMEMBER BROOKE PINTO
THE JOHN A. WILSON BUILDING
1350 PENNSYLVANIA AVENUE, N.W., SUITE 106
WASHINGTON, D.C. 20004
September 16, 2024
Nyasha Smith, Secretary
Council of the District of Columbia
1350 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W.
Washington, DC 20004
Dear Secretary Smith,
Today, along with Councilmembers Christina Henderson, Vincent C. Gray, and Kenyan R. McDuffie, I am
introducing the “Childcare for First Responders Act of 2024.” This bill would require the Mayor to provide
free childcare to all first responders, which the bill defines as any District of Columbia 911 or 311 call-
taker or dispatcher, firefighter, emergency medical technician, or police officer.
The District faces a staffing crisis across all of its public safety agencies that requires creative and attractive
benefits to attract qualified applicants for these crucial roles as first responders and retain them in these
positions. At the same time, the cost of sending a child to daycare in the District continues to rise.1 This bill
aims to incentivize and improve hiring and retention at our public safety agencies by requiring the Mayor
to provide on-site and free childcare to the children of first responders. This benefit will especially help
hiring at the Office of Unified Communications (OUC), where recruitment is especially challenging and
there is currently space available for childcare at its headquarters on Martin Luther King Junior Avenue SE.
The bill would allow the Mayor to determine the best on-site location for childcare at each emergency
response agency. It also provides criteria the Mayor must consider when selecting locations for the
childcare.
Should you have any questions about this legislation, please contact my Committee Director, Evan Marolf,
at emarolf@dccouncil.gov or (202) 724-8073.
Thank you,
Brooke Pinto
Councilmember, Ward 2
Chairwoman, Committee on the Judiciary and Public Safety
Council of the District of Columbia
1
See Cuneyt Dil, Child care can cost as much as college, burdening D.C. families, Axios D.C. (June 22, 2023),
available here.
 1
2
3 ______________________________ ______________________________
4 Councilmember Christina Henderson Councilmember Brooke Pinto
5
6
7 ______________________________ ______________________________
8 Councilmember Vincent C. Gray Councilmember Kenyan R. McDuffie
9
10
11
12
13
14
15 A BILL
16
17 ____________
18
19
20 IN THE COUNCIL OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA
21
22
23 ____________________
24
25
26 To require the Mayor to provide free childcare to all first responders.
27
28 BE IT ENACTED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA, That this
29 act may be cited as the “Childcare for First Responders Act of 2024”.
30 Sec. 2. Definitions.
31 For the purposes of this act, the term:
32 (a) “First responder” means a District of Columbia 911 or 311 call-taker or dispatcher,
33 firefighter, paramedic, emergency medical technician, or police officer.
34 (b) “Emergency response agency” means the Office of Unified Communications, the Fire
35 and Emergency Medical Service Department, or the Metropolitan Police Department.
36 Sec. 3. Provision of childcare to first responders.
1
37 (a) The Mayor shall provide childcare to all first responders employed by the District at
38 no cost to the first responders.
39 (b) Childcare provided under this act shall be available to first responders twenty-four
40 hours of every day that the emergency response agency is operating and shall be staffed by
41 licensed childcare providers.
42 (c) Childcare provided under this act shall be located on-site at each emergency response
43 agency. The Mayor shall determine, in consultation with the director of each emergency
44 response agency, which physical locations at each emergency response agency are best suited to
45 house childcare services. In selecting locations, the Mayor shall consider:
46 (1) The number of staff that work at each of an emergency response agency’s
47 physical locations;
48 (2) The location of workplace for first responders at each emergency response
49 agency who have children;
50 (3) The availability of space where childcare could be housed; and
51 (4) Whether it is more efficient and preferable to first responders to have
52 childcare provided at multiple locations for each emergency response agency or in fewer central
53 locations.
54 Sec. 4. Applicability.
55 (a) This act shall apply upon the date of inclusion of its fiscal effect in an approved
56 budget and financial plan.
57 (b) The Chief Financial Officer shall certify the date of the inclusion of the fiscal effect in
58 an approved budget and financial plan, and provide notice to the Budget Director of the Council
59 of the certification.
2
60 (c)(1) The Budget Director shall cause the notice of the certification to be published in
61 the District of Columbia Register.
62 (2) The date of publication of the notice of the certification shall not affect the
63 applicability of this act.
64 Sec. 5. Fiscal impact statement.
65 The Council adopts the fiscal impact statement in the committee report as the fiscal
66 impact statement required by section 4a of the General Legislative Procedures Act of 1975,
67 approved October 16, 2006 (120 Stat. 2038; D.C. Official Code § 1-301.47a).
68 Sec. 6. Effective date.
69 This act shall take effect following approval by the Mayor (or in the event of veto by the
70 Mayor, action by the Council to override the veto), a 30-day period of congressional review as
71 provided in section 602(c)(1) of the District of Columbia Home Rule Act, approved December
72 24, 1973 (87 Stat. 813; D.C. Official Code §1-206.02(c)(1)), and publication in the District of
73 Columbia Register.
3