Dear DCRA Customers,
I hope you and your families are enjoying the summer here in the District and finding a way to stay cool.
As we move through this last quarter of our fiscal year, it is an unusual time for our agency. On October 1, 2022, the Department of Consumer and Regulatory Affairs (DCRA) will be transitioning into the District’s newest agencies, the Department of Buildings (DOB) and the Department of Licensing and Consumer Protection (DLCP). Even in the midst of our ongoing work to solidify a smooth transition, we remain resolute in our desire to develop and employ new initiatives to better serve the residents and businesses of the District.
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Earlier this month, Mayor Muriel Bowser introduced legislation that, when enacted, will require property owners, contractors, or persons applying for a permit for construction or demolition work to obtain liability insurance to insure adjacent and adjoining property owners for any loss or damage arising out of that work.
Current District law requires contractors to provide proof of liability insurance before they may be issued a license. Furthermore, the DC Building Code requires contractors and building owners to take appropriate precautions to prevent damage to adjoining buildings during construction or demolition. However, no requirements exist to obtain liability insurance coverage for adjacent or adjoining properties. Once enacted, the proposed legislation, the “Protecting Adjacent and Adjoining Property Owners from Construction Damage Amendment Act of 2022,” will close the gaps in insurance requirements and provide coverage for adjoining and adjacent District homeowners.
Please read more below, but in conjunction with the proposed legislation, I am also pleased to introduce the DCRA Insurance Education Center (IEC). This new initiative builds on DCRA’s multiple platforms designed to help protect residents.
In looking toward the future, we have also taken some time to reflect with our team on the progression of our agency. Our focus has always been to take bold action in addressing inefficiencies, refining internal processes, and fostering innovation to better serve the public. Our program enhancements and developments have been focused on improving service delivery. Our efforts have helped cultivate a safer District marketplace for both businesses and consumers. You have entrusted us with a most valuable mission – to protect the health, safety, economic interests, and quality of life of the residents, businesses, and visitors in the District of Columbia, and we are excited to continue moving the District forward.
Stay safe,
 Ernest Chrappah
Director
 Earlier this month, DCRA launched the DCRA Insurance Education Center (IEC) to better inform and protect property owners before they are negatively affected by a damaging construction project.
This new platform furthers DCRA's mission to protect the health, safety, economic interests and quality of life of residents and businesses in the District of Columbia. As part of our agency’s role, we enforce insurance coverage as required by law for certain licensed professionals, such as general contractors, home improvement contractors, tow truck companies, and more. However, insurance coverage can be confusing, and sometimes doesn’t match the expectations or needs of homeowners, independent business owners, and commercial organizations purchasing insurance. This often leaves many improperly protected and at risk. While the Department of Insurance, Securities and Banking (DISB) regulates insurance companies, insurance producers, captive insurance companies, and risk retention groups, DCRA wants you to be mindful of the insurance coverage expectations for licensed professionals.
Our IEC helps to explain potential limitations of your own insurance policies, in addition to the pitfalls sometimes encountered when relying on other parties’ insurance policies to provide coverage for damage. We hope the IEC helps you to navigate the complicated insurance industry so that you have a foundational understanding to help inform questions that you may want to raise with an insurance professional. We’ve also provided quick and easy ways to compare and select insurance coverage for homeowners and contractors. Our goal is to ensure that you are educated, informed, and properly insured.
On Fox 5: DC Effort to Protect Homeowners From Construction-Related Damage
 DCRA Director Ernest Chrappah was recently featured on Fox 5 discussing new legislation that was recently introduced by Mayor Bowser that would require special liability coverage to protect District homeowners from construction-related damage that could result from their neighbor's projects.
 On October 1, 2022, DCRA will transition into the District's newest agencies, the Department of Buildings (DOB) and the Department of Licensing and Consumer Protection (DLCP).
DOB and DLCP will serve residents, businesses, and visitors of the District of Columbia, taking on responsibilities previously under DCRA's purview. This transition will allow each agency to enhance their customers’ experiences through promoting their health, safety, and quality of life.
We are committed to ensuring as seamless a transition as possible for residents, business, and visitors and have been working diligently for the past nine months to implement this change. We trust that the innovative spirit fueling DCRA’s transformation over the past few years will lead these agencies forward. However, we also recognize that operating as two different agencies is an adjustment, resulting in many questions on how each respective agency will serve the District.
We invite you to visit DCRATransition.dc.gov to learn more about DOB and DLCP, understand what each agency will do, view answers to frequently asked questions, and let us know how we can better serve you through this transition.
To join District government at this exciting time, please view the positions associated with DCRA and apply now. Positions will be transferred to the new agencies as of October 1, 2022.
If you have an interest and are potentially qualified, view the current positions at the link below.
DCRA empowers residents and businesses to make informed decisions when renting or purchasing a property, or undertaking a renovation project in the District of Columbia. The new Insurance Education Center (IEC) joins a host of tools and resources available to the public on dcra.dc.gov:
DCRA's Agency Performance Dashboard provides transparency around its key performance metrics. Designed to build public trust and accountability, customers can see for themselves if the agency is keeping its promises. Among the many metrics, the average days to issue building permits and Certificates of Occupancy are reported.
The Contractor Rating System allows residents and business owners to identify a high-performing contractor using a five-star rating system, providing them with the information they need to hire licensed building professionals with proven track records.
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The DCRA Permit Wizard is a customer-friendly application that modernizes the way DCRA customers start residential building projects. By using a wizard-based approach, the Permit Wizard guides customers through a series of questions that identifies the permits needed for the entire project. The Permit Wizard advises the customer of the estimated total cost of permits, informs the customer of anticipated plan reviews by DCRA and sister agencies, indicates required documentation, and provides useful advisories and notifications about their property.
Tertius, an online marketplace for construction inspections allows customers to identify required inspections, specify their budget and timeline, and see certified and approved inspectors available for their project. Customers can request bids, communicate with their chosen inspectors, and even process payments.
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Scout, DCRA's online consolidated database, improves the way customers access essential information transparently. Users can determine if the proper permits were pulled, the inspection history, if there are any violations and Stop Work Orders, notifications, or if the property was ever considered vacant or blighted.
eRecords, DCRA's electronic records management system, provides residents with access to plats, drawings, and plans submitted in the past for the property and learn more about how a renovation was done and whether it was done properly and how you may renovate going forward.
DCRA's Small Business Resource Center (SBRC) is the go-to source for information on how to get your business established and progressing forward. For existing and aspiring businesses, the SBRC is here for you, and we welcome you to join us for these upcoming workshops and events:
Webinar: Learn How to Become a Certified Business Enterprise (CBE)
Wednesday, August 3, 2022 – 10:00 am
Webinar: How to Obtain your Made in DC Certification
Thursday, August 4, 2022 – 10:00 am
Webinar: All Things Non-Profit
Thursday, August 11, 2022 – 10:00 am
Webinar: Navigating Government Contracting with DC Procurement Technical Assistance Center (DCPTAC)
Thursday, August 11, 2022 – 1:00 pm
Webinar: Foundations for a Successful Business: Module 2, The Business Model Canvas
Thursday, August 11, 2022 – 2:00 pm
Zoning and Permitting for Your Small Business
Wednesday, August 17, 2022 – 10:00 am
Webinar: Introduction to Government Contracting
Wednesday, August 24, 2022 – 2:00 pm
Webinar: Foundations for a Successful Business: Module 3, The Business Plan
Thursday, August 25, 2022 – 2:00 pm
SBRC One-On-One Call Session: Steps to Obtaining a Business License
Monday – Friday by appointment between 10:00 am – 4:00 pm
SBRC One-on-One Call Session: "Talk Business After Hours"
Wednesdays by appointment between 4:00 pm - 6:00 pm
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