DC Water and Sewer Authority Billing and Disconnection Clarification Emergency Amendment Act of 2026
This emergency act amends several District laws and regulations governing DC Water and Sewer Authority (DC Water) billing, late fees, disconnections, and notice procedures. It adds DC Water as a covered entity under the Language Access Act of 2004, which means the authority must provide language access services as a major public contact agency. The bill also clarifies that DC Water may impose late-payment charges and penalties, including a 10% charge for bills unpaid more than 30 days and a 1% monthly compounded penalty for bills unpaid more than 60 days.
The measure revises the District of Columbia Public Works Act to formalize water shutoff authority for nonpayment and to require DC Water to submit monthly disconnection-related data to the Council, the Office of the Attorney General, the Office of the People’s Counsel, and the Office of the Tenant Advocate. The required reporting includes the number of notices issued, actual disconnections, restorations, payment plans, tenant-assumed bill payments through tenant associations, and properties placed in receivership. It also updates D.C. regulations to require 30 working days’ notice before termination, to direct notice to occupants rather than only tenants, and to specify multilingual notice requirements where practicable.
The bill’s impact is primarily on DC Water’s operational and consumer-protection obligations. It strengthens oversight of shutoffs and delinquent accounts, expands notice and language-access requirements, and makes clear the penalties and procedures tied to unpaid water and sewer charges. Because the act is emergency legislation, it takes effect immediately upon approval and lasts for 90 days unless extended by later legislation.
The general sentiment reflected in the vote is strongly supportive: the bill passed final reading unanimously, 12-0. That suggests broad Council agreement on the need to clarify billing and disconnection rules and to improve transparency and notice for affected residents and property occupants.
The main points of contention, based on the bill text, are not about whether DC Water should have enforcement tools, but about how those tools are exercised and what protections should accompany them. The legislation balances stronger collection authority with added reporting, multilingual notice, and broader notice to occupants, indicating concern for tenants, owners, and other building occupants facing potential shutoffs. The inclusion of tenant advocates, the Attorney General, and the People’s Counsel in monthly reporting also suggests an emphasis on oversight and consumer protection.
The bill amends the Language Access Act of 2004, the Water and Sewer Authority Establishment and Department of Public Works Reorganization Act of 1996, the District of Columbia Public Works Act of 1954, and D.C. Municipal Regulations Title 21, section 431. It expands DC Water’s legal obligations for language access, clarifies late-fee and penalty authority, codifies disconnection procedures, and requires monthly reporting on shutoffs and related outcomes to multiple District oversight offices. It also updates notice rules to require advance posting to occupants in English, Spanish, or another reasonably determined language, and to ensure occupants receive information about delinquency, payment options, and receivership.
The bill appears to have had broad support and little visible opposition in the available record. It passed final reading unanimously, 12-0, indicating a strong consensus that the emergency clarification was necessary. The overall tone of the legislation is corrective and protective: it preserves DC Water’s ability to collect unpaid charges while adding transparency, notice, and language-access safeguards for residents and property occupants.
The text suggests the central policy tension is between utility collection/enforcement and customer protections. On one side, DC Water is given clear authority to impose late charges, disconnect service for nonpayment, and penalize unauthorized restoration. On the other, the bill expands notice requirements, multilingual communication, monthly reporting, and oversight by tenant and consumer-protection offices. Any contention would likely come from stakeholders concerned about shutoffs, late fees, and the impact on tenants and occupants versus those focused on revenue collection and utility administration, but no explicit opposition is reflected in the provided vote or transcripts.