D.C. Law 21-159. Incarceration to Incorporation Entrepreneurship Program Act of 2016.
AN ACT
To establish the Incarceration to Incorporation Entrepreneurship Program within the Department of Employment Services to educate, train, and assist returning citizens in becoming responsible entrepreneurs, to require the Department of Employment Services and the Department of Small and Local Business Development to operate the program, and to establish the Incarceration to Incorporation Entrepreneurship Fund.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA, That this act may be cited as the "Incarceration to Incorporation Entrepreneurship Program Act of 2016".
Sec. 2. Definitions.
For the purposes of
(1) "DOES" means the Department of Employment Services.
(2) "DSLBD" means the Department of Small and Local Business Development.
(3) "Fund" means the Incarceration to Incorporation Entrepreneurship Fund established by
(4) "IIEP" means the Incarceration to Incorporation Entrepreneurship Program established by
Sec. 3. Incarceration to Incorporation Entrepreneurship Program.
(a) There is established within the Department of Employment Services the Incarceration to Incorporation Entrepreneurship Program, a business development program for returning citizens, which shall be operated by DOES, in conjunction with the Department of Small and Local Business Development, to:
(1) Invest in for-profit and nonprofit businesses owned, operated, or managed by returning citizens;
(2) Provide a program to assist a returning citizen in obtaining a general education development diploma;
(3) Provide classes to improve math, reading, and writing abilities;
(4) Provide business and microenterprise development training to include:
(A) Accounting;
(B) Finance;
(C) Administration;
(D) Business planning;
(E) Budgeting;
(F) Marketing;
(G) Business law;
(H) Accessing startup capital, and other business startup topics as identified by the U.S. Small Business Administration and Certified Community Development Financial Institutions;
(I) Training and guidance on the certification process for becoming a certified business enterprise pursuant to
(J) Technology training;
(5) Provide educational workshops and seminars on financial literacy;
(6) Provide ongoing mentorship and support;
(7) Place participants in apprenticeships at established businesses;
(8) Provide monthly networking meetings with business leaders, such as:
(A) Business owners;
(B) Angel investors; and
(C) Heads of venture capital and investment firms; and
(9) Provide scholarships or grants for returning citizens to enroll in business classes at the University of the District of Columbia or the University of the District of Columbia Community College.
(b) DOES shall confer with other agencies, organizations, and individuals such as:
(1) The Office of the Deputy Mayor for Greater Economic Opportunity;
(2) The Workforce Investment Council;
(3) The Mayor's Office on Returning Citizen Affairs; and
(4) Any other relevant agency or organization that DOES and DSLBD consider necessary to meet the objectives of
(c) For the purposes of this section, the term "returning citizen" means a resident who was previously incarcerated.
Sec. 4. Incarceration to Incorporation Entrepreneurship Fund.
(a) There is established as a special fund the Incarceration to Incorporation Entrepreneurship Fund, which shall be administered by the Office of the Deputy Mayor for Greater Economic Opportunity in accordance with subsections (c) and (d) of this section.
(b) Up to $10 million from the following sources shall be deposited into the Fund:
(1) Funds appropriated for the purposes of
(2) Donations from the public;
(3) Donations from private entities; and
(4) Funds provided through a sponsorship agreement.
(c) Money in the Fund shall be used to implement, operate, and administer IIEP.
(d) Money in the Fund shall not be used for any other purpose other than for the purposes of
(e)(1) The money deposited into the Fund, and interested earned, shall not revert to the unrestricted fund balance of the General Fund of the District of Columbia at the end of a fiscal year, or at any other time.
(2) Subject to authorization in an approved budget and financial plan, any funds appropriated in the Fund shall be continually available without regard to fiscal year limitation.
(f) The Fund shall be subject to a yearly audit by the Office of the District of Columbia Auditor and the Office of the Chief Financial Officer.
Sec. 5. Reporting requirements.
(a) Within one year of the applicability date of this act, and by June 1 of every subsequent year, DOES, in consultation with DSLBD, shall submit a report on the operations of the IIEP to the Mayor and the Council.
(b) Subject to subsection (c) of this section, the report shall include, at a minimum:
(1) The profiles of IIEP participants;
(2) Recidivism rates of IIEP participants;
(3) The number of businesses formed and launched by IIEP participants;
(4) The number of businesses formed by IIEP participants that have sustained operations for at least 12 months following their launch; and
(5) Recommendations on how to improve the IIEP and ensure its sustainability.
(c) IIEP participants may expressly authorize that their anonymity be preserved in the report.
Sec. 6. Applicability.
(a)
(b) The Chief Financial Officer shall certify the date of the inclusion of the fiscal effect in an approved budget and financial plan, and provide notice to the Budget Director of the Council of the certification.
(c)(1) The Budget Director shall cause the notice of the certification to be published in the District of Columbia Register.
(2) The date of publication of the notice of the certification shall not affect the applicability of
Sec. 7. Fiscal impact statement.
The Council adopts the fiscal impact statement in the committee report as the fiscal impact statement required by section 4a of the General Legislative Procedures Act of 1975, approved October 16, 2006 (120 Stat. 2038; D.C. Official Code § 1-301.47a).
Sec. 8. Effective date.
This act shall take effect following approval by the Mayor (or in the event of veto by the Mayor, action by the Council to override the veto), a 30-day period of congressional review as provided in section 602(c)(1) of the District of Columbia Home Rule Act, approved December 24, 1973 (87 Stat. 813; D.C. Official Code § 1-206.02(c)(1)), and publication in the District of Columbia Register.
