HIV/AIDS Advocacy: City Council 101

The DC City Council generally meets the first Tuesday of each month beginning at 10:00 a.m. in the Council Chamber. All Council sessions are open to the public and are broadcast live and repeated on the Council cable channel, City Cable 13. Committee public hearings held in the Chamber are also broadcast.

The Council offers free subscription to the weekly mailing of the Calendar of the Week. In addition to the schedule of upcoming Council and committee meetings, the Calendar includes a list of bills introduced and committee referrals; bills adopted by the Council, and bills that have become law. To get on the mailing list, call 724-8000. The Calendar is available on line. (for more info on public participation in City Council meetings, click here).

he council has twelve sub-committees. Council standing committees meet once or twice a month on regularly scheduled days. Most of the work on HIV/AIDS is done in the the Committee on Health, which is chaired by David Catania. The other members of this committee are: Jim Graham, Phil Mendelson, Harry Thomas, and Marrion Barry.

The Committee on Health has oversight of the Department of Health, and the HIV/AIDS Administrations (which is part of the Department of Health).