§ 1–301.192. Deputy Mayor for Public Safety and Justice grant-making authority.
(a)(1) The Deputy Mayor for Public Safety and Justice ("Deputy Mayor") shall have grant-making authority for the purpose of providing grants to support the Safe Passage Safe Blocks program, which provides a presence and safe passage for students and families as they travel to and from school.
(2) For the 2025-2026 school year and each subsequent year, the Deputy Mayor shall establish Safe Passage Safe Blocks priority areas by considering violent crime occurring within 500 meters around school campuses and metro stations or transit hubs, for violent incidents committed against students, during the 365 days preceding the selection of a priority area; the number of unusual incidents reported by Safe Passage grantees during the school year for existing program priority areas; and feedback from stakeholders. Beginning May 1, 2025, and by May 1 of each year thereafter, the Deputy Mayor shall report to the Council the priority areas that have been selected or eliminated for the upcoming school year and the data and feedback from stakeholders that was used to make that determination.
(3) An organization receiving a grant pursuant to this subsection shall submit a report to the Deputy Mayor by the end of each fiscal year in which funds are received containing the following:
(A) An evaluation of the success of its Safe Passage Safe Blocks program, including a detailed description of the program activities;
(B) A description of any training or support provided to program staff;
(C) A summary of the total number of unusual incidents reported by the grantee for each school year to the Safe Passage Safe Blocks program;
(D) A summary of efforts to coordinate with participating schools, community organizations, and other stakeholders; and
(E) Any other data or information as required by the Deputy Mayor.
(b)(1) The Deputy Mayor for Public Safety and Justice ("Deputy Mayor") shall establish a pilot, under which the Deputy Mayor shall have grantmaking authority to issue grants to eligible organizations, as described in paragraph (2) of this subsection, solely for the purpose of creating or augmenting a Safe Commercial Corridors Program, which shall promote public safety and health through evidence-based activities for residents, workers, and visitors within the area served by the organization and the surrounding area ("commercial district").
(2) To be eligible for a grant under this subsection, an organization shall:
(A) Serve the District's residents, workers, business owners, property owners, and visitors of a commercial corridor in the Downtown, Shaw, or Adams Morgan neighborhoods; and
(B) Engage in the maintenance of public and commercial spaces in a commercial corridor in the Downtown, Shaw, or Adams Morgan neighborhoods.
(3) An organization seeking a grant under this subsection shall submit to the Deputy Mayor a proposed Safe Commercial Corridors Program application, in a form prescribed by the Deputy Mayor, which shall include:
(A) A description of the public safety and health problems faced in the commercial district;
(B) A Safe Commercial Corridors Program Plan describing how the applicant proposes to spend the grant funds in evidence-based ways to address the public safety and health problems identified in the application and to promote improvements in public safety and health in the commercial district;
(C) A Clean Hands certification; and
(D) Any additional information requested by the Deputy Mayor.
(4) A Safe Commercial Corridors Program Plan may include the following activities:
(A) Relationship-building with residents, workers, businesses, and regular visitors;
(B) Connecting residents, workers, visitors, and businesses with resources available through District government agencies and direct service providers;
(C) Providing safe passage for individuals who request accompaniment walking to transit or their vehicles;
(D) Assisting business owners with improvements to their security and safety systems and protocols;
(E) Responding to individuals with substance use disorders and implementing harm-reduction strategies;
(F) Implementing de-escalation techniques;
(G) Deterring crime and public safety violations;
(H) Liaising with residents, workers, businesses, visitors, District public safety and health agencies, direct service providers in the community, and others as appropriate;
(I) Providing culturally competent services and programming; and
(J) Implementing other innovative strategies to promote public safety.
(5) Organizations receiving funds pursuant to this subsection shall endeavor to coordinate with other organizations receiving funds pursuant to this subsection and to share results and lessons learned from implementation of a Safe Commercial Corridors Program and other public safety efforts implemented by the organization.
(6) A grant awarded pursuant to this subsection may be used to pay for the costs of:
(A) Salary and fringe benefits for staff;
(B) Equipment, training, training materials, uniforms, first aid and other medical materials and equipment, and other materials and equipment for purposes of implementing the Safe Commercial Corridors Program; and
(C) Other costs that support improved public safety and health pursuant to the Safe Commercial Corridors Program Plan.
(7) An organization receiving a grant pursuant to this subsection shall submit a report to the Deputy Mayor by the end of each fiscal year in which funds are received containing the following:
(A) An evaluation of the success of its Safe Commercial Corridors Program, including a detailed description of the program activities;
(B) A description of any training or support provided to program staff;
(C) A summary of the number and types of interactions between program staff and residents, visitors, businesses, and other individuals;
(D) Evidence indicating the impact of the program activities on public safety and health indicators; and
(E) Any other data or information as required by the Deputy Mayor.
(c)(1) The Deputy Mayor shall establish a Safe Commercial Corridors Program, under which the Deputy Mayor shall have authority to issue grants to eligible organizations, as described in paragraph (2) of this subsection, for the purpose of promoting public safety and health through evidence-based activities for residents, workers, and visitors within the area served by the organization and the surrounding area ("commercial district").
(2) To be eligible for a grant under this subsection, an organization shall:
(A) Serve the District's residents, workers, business owners, property owners, and visitors of a commercial corridor in the District; and
(B) Engage in the maintenance of public and commercial spaces in the District.
(3) An organization seeking a grant under this subsection shall submit to the Deputy Mayor a proposed Safe Commercial Corridors Program application, in a form prescribed by the Deputy Mayor, which shall include:
(A) A description of the public safety and health problems faced in the commercial district;
(B) A Safe Commercial Corridors Program Plan describing how the applicant proposes to spend the grant funds in evidence-based ways to address the public safety and health problems identified in the application and to promote improvements in public safety and health in the commercial district;
(C) A Clean Hands certification; and
(D) Any additional information requested by the Deputy Mayor.
(4) A Safe Commercial Corridors Program Plan may include the following activities:
(A) Relationship-building with residents, workers, businesses, and regular visitors;
(B) Connecting residents, workers, visitors, and businesses with resources available through District government agencies and direct service providers;
(C) Providing safe passage for individuals who request accompaniment walking to transit or their vehicles;
(D) Assisting business owners with improvements to their security and safety systems and protocols;
(E) Responding to individuals with substance use disorders and implementing harm-reduction strategies;
(F) Implementing de-escalation techniques;
(G) Deterring crime and public safety violations;
(H) Liaising with residents, workers, businesses, visitors, District public safety and health agencies, direct service providers in the community, and others as appropriate;
(I) Providing culturally competent services and programming; and
(J) Implementing other innovative strategies to promote public safety.
(5) Organizations receiving funds pursuant to this subsection shall endeavor to coordinate with other organizations receiving funds pursuant to this subsection and to share results and lessons learned from implementation of a Safe Commercial Corridors Program and other public safety efforts implemented by the organization.
(6) A grant awarded pursuant to this subsection may be used to pay for the costs of:
(A) Salary and fringe benefits for staff;
(B) Equipment, training, training materials, uniforms, first aid and other medical materials and equipment, and other materials and equipment for purposes of implementing the Safe Commercial Corridors Program; and
(C) Other costs that support improved public safety and health pursuant to the Safe Commercial Corridors Program Plan.
(7) An organization receiving a grant pursuant to this subsection shall submit a report to the Deputy Mayor by the end of each fiscal year in which funds are received containing the following:
(A) An evaluation of the success of its Safe Commercial Corridors Program, including a detailed description of the program activities;
(B) A description of any training or support provided to program staff;
(C) A summary of the number and types of interactions between program staff and residents, visitors, businesses, and other individuals;
(D) Evidence indicating the impact of the program activities on public safety and health indicators; and
(E) Any other data or information as required by the Deputy Mayor.
(d)(1) The Deputy Mayor shall have grant-making authority for the purpose of providing nonprofit organizations with competitive grants to increase security through both hiring security personnel and utilizing additional security measures.
(2) To be eligible for a grant, a nonprofit organization shall demonstrate that it is specifically at high risk of terrorist attack or other extremist attacks through reliable risk-assessment methods that measure threats, vulnerabilities, and potential consequences of an attack, as determined by the Deputy Mayor.
(3) An organization seeking a grant under this subsection shall submit to the Deputy Mayor an application, in a form prescribed by the Deputy Mayor, which shall include:
(A) A description of the specific threats, vulnerabilities, and potential consequences of an attack on the nonprofit organization;
(B) A plan describing how the applicant proposes to spend the grant funds to improve its safety and prevent potential attacks;
(C) A Clean Hands certification;
(D) Documentation proving that the applicant is an eligible 501(c)(3) organization; and
(E) Any additional information requested by the Deputy Mayor.
(4) A grant awarded pursuant to this subsection may be used to pay for the costs of:
(A) Salary and fringe benefits for security personnel;
(B) Equipment, training, training materials, uniforms, first aid and other medical materials and equipment, and other materials and equipment for purposes of providing for the safety and security of the nonprofit organization; and
(C) Other security devices, systems, or additional costs associated with target hardening and other physical security enhancements and activities.
(5) Grant funds shall not be used to directly engage in inherently religious activities, such as proselytizing, scripture study, or worship.
