§ 1–328.05. Workforce job development grant-making authority.

(a) The Director of the Department of Employment Services (“DOES”) may issue grants in accordance with applicable federal and District law to individuals and organizations from the funds made available to the DOES pursuant to local appropriations or, in coordination with the Workforce Investment Council, pursuant to the federal Workforce Investment Act of 1998, approved August 7, 1998 (112 Stat. 936; 29 U.S.C. § 2822), for workforce development purposes, including increasing occupational skills, job retention, employment opportunities, and earnings of the District’s workforce pursuant to:

(1) Section 32-242;

(2) Section 32-243;

(3) Section 32-752;

(4) Sections 32-1331 and 32-1332; and

(5) Section 32-1610.

(b) Notwithstanding the provisions of § 47-368.06, grants that may be issued pursuant to this section include grants that the Mayor, Director of the DOES, or an agency receives through an intra-District transfer, a memorandum of understanding, or a reprogramming from an agency lacking grant-making authority.

(b-1)(1) In addition to the notice required pursuant to § 1-328.13(c), before making or issuing a grant pursuant to this section, DOES shall:

(A)(i) Issue a request for applications ("RFA"), which shall remain open for at least 30 days; and

(ii) Beginning no later than the date the RFA is issued, post the RFA on the homepage of its website and widely advertise the RFA through public means, including social media;

(B) Host a pre-application conference at least 14 days after the release of the RFA, at least 7 days before the deadline for submitting a Letter of Intent, if required, and at least 14 days before the deadline for submitting an application;

(C) Verify an applicant's reported past performance and statements of receiving prior funding for similar work; and

(D) Notwithstanding § 1-328.14(1), and before issuing an award selection notice, notify each applicant whose application was not selected for award, in writing, and include copies of the reviewers' evaluations and comments.

(2)(A) A grant reviewer for grants issued pursuant to this section may not have a financial or personal relationship with any applicant in the competition the reviewer is judging and shall recuse him or herself from any competition in which such a relationship exists.

(B) A grant reviewer shall complete a conflict of interest form indicating the nature of any financial or personal relationships with any applicant in a grant competition the reviewer is judging.

(3) Whenever possible, DOES shall conduct site visits and interviews with identified grant finalists before making or issuing an award.

(c) The Mayor, pursuant to subchapter I of Chapter 5 of Title 2 [§ 2-501 et seq.], may issue rules to implement the provisions of this section.

(d) By July 30, 2013, the Director of DOES shall submit to the Council a report providing an analysis of, and corrective actions for any problems pertaining to, the following issues related to contracting and procurement processing with DOES:

(1) The procedures through which DOES processes and issues grants;

(2) The average timeframe in which a contract is processed; and

(3) The common delays to grant issuance.

(e) The DOES shall:

(1) Post on its website all executed grant agreements in full, without redactions; and

(2) Quarterly transmit to the Council unredacted grantee performance evaluations and completed monthly status report forms.