Committee hears support, technical suggestions for Youth Advisory Council on Climate Change bill

The Committee on Transportation and the Environment held a public hearing March 31 on the Youth Advisory Council on Climate Change and Environmental Conservation Establishment Act of 2025, a bill to create a 17‑member youth advisory council to advise the mayor, DOEE, the Commission on Climate Change and Resiliency, and the Council on climate and environmental policy.

Students and advocates urged the committee to pass the bill and offered amendments to strengthen the body’s effectiveness. “We ask that you pass the Youth Advisory Council on Climate Change and Environment giving it a vital outlet,” said Elsa Boehm, a 17‑year‑old Ward 6 resident and East DC High School student who testified as a public witness. Public witnesses — including college and high‑school students, representatives of Friends of the Earth, Sierra Club DC and a commissioner from Los Angeles’ youth climate commission — generally supported the concept while suggesting more explicit training, more frequent meetings, clearer residency language for college students and stronger connections to existing District climate plans and workforce development programs.

Ian Schlater, a second‑year public‑policy student at American University who testified on his own behalf, told the committee that a residency requirement in the bill — which currently requires college applicants to have been District residents living outside a dormitory for two years prior to application — would exclude many college students. “Please consider including the tens of thousands of passionate college students who, while not official residents, still value the district,” Schlater said, and recommended defining residency to allow proof of enrollment or a year of on‑campus housing as eligibility.

Environmental organizations recommended additional changes to make the council effective. Peter Quinn Jacobs of Sierra Club DC urged stronger training and stakeholder engagement, saying the bill’s proposed minimum of four meetings per year “will not meet the bare minimum requirements for a body like the youth advisory council to be effective” and recommending a higher meeting frequency and regular forums with partner organizations. Maureen Holman, commissioner with the District of Columbia Commission on Climate Change and Resiliency, recommended adding workforce development to the council’s stated purpose, specifying task responsibilities tied to agencies (for example DCPS, DPR, DGS and the Office of the Chief Financial Officer), and requiring formal updates to the climate commission so both bodies are linked.

Panelists from Los Angeles’ youth climate commission described a youth‑led, government‑supported model that provides training, compensation and regular meetings, and they urged the District to ensure youth have supports that recognize students’ school and family obligations. Witnesses suggested a mix of ages and roles: some urged preserving middle‑school opportunities — potentially as “junior” or shadow members — while making most voting membership high‑school and college‑age to balance continuity and capacity.

DOEE Director Richard Jackson said the agency supports “the spirit and intent of this legislation” and recalled DOEE programs that engage young people, such as the Green Fellows Program, the Anacostia Environmental Youth Summit, and partnerships with other cities’ youth councils. DOEE staff also recommended ensuring the council has staff support and training capacity; they noted past lessons from staffing the Commission on Climate Change and Resiliency and said capacity will be required for sustained impact.

Committee Chair Charles Allen and members signaled they will work with DOEE, the climate commission and public witnesses to refine residency language, meeting frequency, staffing and explicit links to District climate plans before moving the bill toward a vote. The record for the hearing is open for written testimony through April 14, 2025.