Government of the District of Columbia
DC Department of Public Works
Testimony of
William O. Howland, Jr.
Director
"Anti-Graffiti Act of 2009"
Bill 18-0069
May 29, 2009
Committee on Public Safety and the Judiciary
Phil Mendelson, Chairman
John A. Wilson Building, Room 412
1350 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW
Washington, DC 20004
TESTIMONY OF WILLIAM O. HOWLAND, JR.
DIRECTOR, DC DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC WORKS
PUBLIC HEARING ON THE “ANTI-GRAFFITI ACT OF 2009", BILL 18-0069 BEFORE THE COMMITTEE ON PUBLIC SAFETY AND THE JUDICIARY
May 29, 2009, 12 pm
• Good afternoon. I am William O. Howland, Jr., Director of the Department of Public Works. Thank you Chairman Mendelson for this opportunity to testify on Bill 18-69, the Anti-Graffiti Act of 2009. This bill is substantially similar to legislation that was approved during the last Council session by the Committee on Public Works and the Environment, Bill 17-0270, the Omnibus Graffiti Reduction Act of 2007, but it contains two changes that were suggested during hearings on the earlier version of the bill, which I will describe belowlater in my testimony..
• The District government does not condone graffiti on public space. DPW strongly supports this bill and its Ppassage of this bill demonstrateswill demonstrate that the Mayor, the Council and the public do not condone graffiti on private property.
• This bill clarifies what is constitutes graffiti, who is responsible for abating it, the District’s role in assisting with abatement, and when abatement must occur. It makes clear that individual property owners who are victims of graffiti will not be revictimized by bearing the cost of restoring their homes or businesses.
• Bill 18-69 will streamline the process for abating graffiti on private property, thus improving the visual appeal of our neighborhoods and the community -at-large. It will also accelerate the adjudication process for property owners wishing to appeal a notice of violation issued for failing to remove graffiti.
• There are three functions associated with eliminating graffiti: prevention; enforcement and abatement. DPW has begun to address prevention through public awareness by creating advertising directed toward adolescents and young adults. The legislation also tackles enforcement by increasing the reward for information that results in conviction for a graffiti-related offense. However, today our focus is abatement.
• The Department of Public Works is responsible for abating or removing graffiti from public space. We also remove graffiti from private property when the owner provides a signed waiver of liability.
• The majority of graffiti in the District appears on private property and this legislation gives DPW the clear authority to abate graffiti on private property when the owner fails to do so.
• In many instances, the request for abatement comes from a neighbor or someone other than the property owner. Under the current system, before we go in to abate graffiti on private property we first get consent to enter the property and a waiver of liability from the property owner. Waiting for property owners to provide the consent and the waiver of liability hampers our abatement efforts. The result is graffiti that stays in place until eroded by the weather.
• Now, I would like to describe the process the executive will use if given the authority under this legislation.
• DPW employees, as well as other those from other agencies, such as the Department of Consumer and Regulatory Affairs and the Mayor’s Office of Community Relations and Services, travel throughout the District everyday. We see what’s going on in our neighborhoods, including the appearance of graffiti on public and private property.
• These employees may attach a doorknocker on private properties where graffiti appears. The doorknocker notifies the property owner that graffiti is present, that it must be abated, and by whenthe deadline by which the property owner must respond to the notice.
• The doorknocker also informs the owner of the options available for removing the graffiti, such as using a graffiti removal kit or paint kit from DPW. Or, upon request, DPW will remove graffiti by painting over it or by using our powerwasher, and that option also is noted on the doorknocker notice.
• If the property owner responds by the date on the doorknocker and wants DPW to remove the graffiti or prefers either of the removal kits, DPW will take the action requested.
• If the property owner responds timely but indicates an unwillingness to remove the graffiti or have DPW remove it, the executive may issue a notice of violation. Under these circumstances, DPW will not abate the graffiti until the notice of violation has been upheld through the adjudication process (which is further reason for speeding up this process). If the violation is upheld, the property can be assessed a $500 fine plus two and one-half times the abatement costs.
• If a property owner does not respond timely to the doorknocker notice and does not request removal assistance or express the intention to remove the graffiti, the executive will consider the owner to have consented to removal of the graffiti.
• The bill contains two changes that were suggested during discussions about the earlier version of this bill. First, we have removed the provision stating that a marking would be treated as graffiti if the owner did not consent to it at the time it was placed on the property, even if the owner consented after the fact. We have also deleted the provisions prohibiting the sale of graffiti materials to minors.
• We are asking for two additional changes. The first is to delete the limitation on the District’s liability when it abates graffiti. Instead, the regular negligence standard should apply. Also, the language repealing certain overlapping Code provisions was dropped from this bill, and we ask that they be included. My staff can provide your office with suggested specific language.
• Let me emphasize that we want to eliminate graffiti, whether that’s accomplished through our own efforts or through those of property owners.
• Again, thank you for hearing my testimony. I will be happy to respond to your questions.