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Children's Law Center urges funding for DLCP records and enforcement to protect tenants
Summary
A Children's Law Center attorney asked the council to fund DLCP improvements to beneficial-ownership data, proactive investigations, and interagency sharing, warning that cuts to enforcement staff could reduce accountability for noncompliant businesses and housing providers.
Patrick Cathern, policy attorney at the Children's Law Center, told the committee that accurate ownership and licensing data are critical to protect tenants and to enable effective enforcement. "We urge the council to dedicate resources, to DLCP to support proactive review, investigation, and to ensure the reliability of beneficial ownership data," Cathern said, arguing that moving from a completeness model to one emphasizing accuracy and integrity would help identify red flags in ownership filings.
Cathern described how better reports linking owners across entities would make it easier for advocates and enforcement partners to reach informal resolutions or, if necessary, determine parties to name in litigation. He told the committee the proposed reductions in civil infractions enforcement staff "could hamper efforts to hold noncompliant businesses accountable" and urged maintaining or enhancing DLCP's investigative capacity.
