PRESS RELEASE KENYAN R. MCDUFFIE COUNCILMEMBER WARD 5 Contact: Corey Arnez Griffin, Chief of Staff (202) 724-8028 cgriffin@dccouncil.

us For Immediate Release: September 19, 2012

Councilmember McDuffie Introduces Legislation to Protect the Residents of Ward 5 WASHINGTON, DC Today, at the Council of the District of Columbias first meeting after the summer recess, Councilmember Kenyan R. McDuffie introduced several bills to protect the residents of Ward 5. As a result of the catastrophic flooding that residents of Bloomingdale, Eckington, Edgewood and LeDroit Park suffered this summer, Councilmember McDuffie, along with Councilmembers Brown, Graham, and Orange co-introduced the District of Columbia Flood Assistance Fund Amendment Act of 2012. Councilmember McDuffie noted that many of his constituents homes have been flooded and contaminated by raw sewage and untreated wastewater backing up through the Districts sewer system and into their basements. Councilmember McDuffie stated that this legislation will require the Director of the District Department of the Environment to establish and administer a Flood Assistance Fund to pay individual claims resulting from sewer line backup and overland flooding damage to homes and personal property. Councilmember McDuffie also introduced the District of Columbia Fire and Casualty Amendment Act of 2012. This bill would require insurers to provide a written statement to homeowners, listing all of the additional optional coverage available from the insurer to the homeowner, and provide a written notice to the homeowner stating that a standard homeowners insurance policy does not cover losses from floods and an explanation of how flood insurance may be obtained. Along with noting that our neighboring jurisdictions have the same requirements proposed in the bill, Councilmember McDuffie stated homeowners deserve to know exactly what their insurance policy covers and to make sound decisions about their coverage needs. In a third piece of legislation to address some of the concerns regarding the recent flooding, Councilmember McDuffie, along with Councilmembers Orange, Brown, and Graham co-

introduced the Bloomingdale and LeDroit Park Backflow Preventer and Sandbag Act of 2012. The bill would require DC Water and the Department of Public Works (DPW) to bear the full cost of installing backflow preventers and supplying sandbags to residents in areas affected by flooding. Additionally, the bill would require the District Department of Transportation and DPW to conduct a study to determine whether there are any structural changes that can be made to Rhode Island Avenue to mitigate the flooding. Finally, Councilmember McDuffie introduced the Medical Marijuana Cultivation Center and Dispensary Location Restriction Amendment Act of 2012. The oversaturation of medical marijuana cultivation centers and dispensaries exclusively and inequitably falls upon Ward 5, stated McDuffie. McDuffie explained that the bill precludes more cultivation centers and dispensaries from locating within the Ward. Ensuring that cultivation centers and dispensaries are equitably distributed across the citys wards will facilitate both balance and access, stated McDuffie. -###-