§ 48–313. Composition and term of the Food Policy Council.

(a) The Food Policy Council shall consist of 12 public members appointed by the Mayor with the advice and consent of the Council of the District of Columbia. The members shall be equally representative of established public, nonprofit, and for-profit entities and organizations involved in the local food economy or food access in the District.

(b) Public members shall serve terms of 3 years; provided that of the initial members appointed, 4 shall serve for a term of 3 years, 4 shall serve for a term of 2 years, and 4 shall serve for a term of one year. Members may be reappointed but may serve no more than 2 consecutive full terms. The Food Policy Director shall serve on the Food Policy Council as long as he or she remains the Food Policy Director.

(c) When a vacancy develops on the Food Policy Council, the Mayor shall, with the advice and consent of the Council of the District of Columbia, appoint a successor to fill the unexpired portion of the term within 90 days of the vacancy.

(d) Public members shall be evenly divided into at least 4 working groups to address prominent food policy topics. Each working group may include between 4 to 8 additional members of the public named by the public members with recognized expertise in the working group's policy area. The working groups shall make recommendations for food policy to the Food Policy Council to be included in the annual report. Topics covered by the working groups may include:

(1) Entrepreneurship and Food Jobs;

(2) Food Equity and Access;

(3) Nutrition and Health;

(4) Sustainable Supply Chain;

(5) Urban Agriculture; and

(6) Climate and Resiliency.

(e) Members shall elect a chairperson of the Food Policy Council. The chairperson shall name public members to working groups.

(f) The Food Policy Council shall develop its own rules of procedure.

(g) The Food Policy Council shall meet at least once every other month. The meetings shall be held in the District and be open to the public, and members of the public shall be allowed to voice questions or concerns about food policy at the meetings. A quorum to transact business shall consist of a majority of members.

(h) There shall be 10 ex officio members, including Directors of the following departments or their designees:

(1) Department of Human Services;

(2) Department of Health;

(3) Department of Licensing and Consumer Protection;

(4) Department of Parks and Recreation;

(5) Office of the State Superintendent of Education;

(6) Office of Planning;

(7) District Department of Transportation;

(8) District Department of the Environment;

(9) Department of General Services;

(10) Office of the Deputy Mayor for Planning and Economic Development;

(11) District of Columbia Public Schools; and

(12) Department of Small and Local Business Development.

(i) Ex officio members shall develop and implement policies and programs in their agencies that are consistent with the Food Policy Council's purposes. They shall attend the Food Policy Council meetings to assist in coordinating plans and policies that are beneficial to the local food economy and improving food access in the District. In addition, ex officio members shall work with the Food Policy Director and the Food Policy Council to examine existing regulations and policies that may be overly burdensome as applied to the local food economy.

(j) The public members appointed pursuant to subsection (a) of this section, the ex officio members described in subsection (h) of this section, and the Food Policy Director appointed pursuant to § 48-314(a) shall be voting members of the Food Policy Council.