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B26-0179 • 2025

Paper Alleys Planning Amendment Act of 2025

Paper Alleys Planning Amendment Act of 2025

Budget
Active

The official status still shows this bill as active or still awaiting another formal step.

Sponsor
Lewis George
Last action
2025-11-21
Official status
Under Council Review
Effective date
Not listed

Plain English Breakdown

The bill is currently under Council Review and has not yet taken effect.

Paper Alleys Planning Amendment Act of 2025

This bill requires the D.C. Department of Transportation to create a plan and budget for improving all unpaved or partially paved alleys by March 15, 2026.

What This Bill Does

  • Requires DDOT to make a public map showing where known paper alleys are located and who owns them.
  • Asks DDOT to inspect each alley and estimate the cost to repair it up to official standards.
  • Needs DDOT to create ways for neighbors and local Advisory Neighborhood Commissions to share ideas about improving their alleys.
  • Requires a total cost estimate for fixing all paper alleys versus only those with enough community support as determined by DDOT metrics.
  • Sets rules for deciding which alleys get fixed first, focusing on low-income areas and high-usage spots.

Who It Names or Affects

  • The District of Columbia Department of Transportation (DDOT)
  • Residents living next to unpaved or partially paved alleys
  • Advisory Neighborhood Commissions in the area

Terms To Know

Paper alley
An alley that is not fully paved with hard material like asphalt.
DDOT
The District Department of Transportation, the city agency in charge of roads and alleys.

Limits and Unknowns

  • The bill does not say how much money will be given to actually fix the alleys.
  • It is unclear if this plan will become law because it still needs approval from the Mayor, a congressional review period, and publication in the D.C. Register.

Bill History

  1. 2025-11-21 Council of the District of Columbia LIMS

    Re-Referral published.

  2. 2025-11-18 Council of the District of Columbia LIMS

    Re-Referred to Committee of the Whole with comments from the Committee on Transportation and the Environment

  3. 2025-04-01 Council of the District of Columbia LIMS

    Referred to Committee of the Whole

  4. 2025-03-28 Council of the District of Columbia LIMS

    Notice of Intent to Act on B26-0179 Published in the District of Columbia Register

  5. 2025-03-21 Council of the District of Columbia LIMS

    B26-0179 Introduced by Councilmember Lewis George at Office of the Secretary

Official Summary Text

Paper Alleys Planning Amendment Act of 2025

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text 
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________________________________ ________________________________ 1 Councilmember Robert C. White, Jr. Councilmember Janeese Lewis George 2 3 4 ________________________________ ________________________________ 5 Councilmember Zachary Parker Councilmember Brooke Pinto 6 7 8 ________________________________ 9 Councilmember Anita Bonds 10 11 A BILL 12 13 __________________ 14 15 16 IN THE COUNCIL OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA 17 18 __________________ 19 20 To amend An Act Making appropriations to provide for the expenses of the government of the 21 District of Columbia for fiscal year ending June thirtieth, eighteen hundred and ninety-22 five, and for other purposes, to require the Department of Transportation to produce a 23 plan and estimated budget to improve all currently unimproved or “paper” alleys. 24 25 BE IT ENACTED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA, That this 26 act may be cited as the “Paper Alleys Planning Amendment Act of 2025". 27 Sec. 2. The text under the heading “ASSESSMENT AND PERMIT WORK” of An Act 28 Making appropriations to provide for the expenses of the government of the District of Columbia 29 for fiscal year ending June thirtieth, eighteen hundred and ninety-five, and for other purposes, 30 approved August 7, 1894 (28 Stat. 247; D.C. Official Code § 9-401.06), is amended by adding 31 new subsections (d) and (e) to read as follows: 32 “(d) No later than March 15, 2026, the Department of Transportation (“DDOT”) shall 33 develop a plan for improving all paper alleys, which shall include the following: 34 “(1) A publicly posted map identifying the locations and ownership of all known 35 paper alleys in the District; 36

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“(2) Plans for identifying, inspecting, and developing a cost estimate for repairing 37 each paper alley such that it is built to DDOT standards; 38 “(3) Plans and metrics for engaging neighbors adjacent to a paper alley and the 39 alley’s Advisory Neighborhood Commission to solicit community input on alleyway 40 improvements and understand what changes to the alley the community would support; 41 “(4) A cost estimate for: 42 “(A) Fully repairing all of the District’s paper alleys; and 43 “(B) Repairing paper alleys only when there is sufficient community 44 support, as determined by metrics established by DDOT, for improvements or changes to an 45 alley’s structure; and 46 “(5) A framework for evaluating which paper alleys to improve first, which shall 47 prioritize low-income communities and high-usage alleys.” 48 “(e) For purposes of this section, the term “paper alley” shall mean an unpaved or 49 partially paved alley.”. 50 Sec. 3. Fiscal impact statement. 51 The Council adopts the fiscal impact statement in the committee report as the fiscal 52 impact statement required by section 4a of the General Legislative Procedures Act of 1975, 53 approved October 16, 2006 (120 Stat. 2038; D.C. Official Code§ 1-301.47a). 54 Sec. 4. Effective date. 55 This act shall take effect following approval by the Mayor (or in the event of veto by the 56 Mayor, action by the Council to override the veto), a 30-day period of congressional review as 57 provided in section 602(c)(1) of the District of Columbia Home Rule Act, approved December 58
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24, 1973 (87 Stat. 813; D.C. Official Code § 1-206.02(c)(1)), and publication in the District of 59 Columbia Register. 60