Philip Heinrich (D), Candidate for DC Council At-Large

Philip Heinrich

Democratic Party

Candidate in Special Election for Council At-Large
Election Date: Tuesday, December 2, 1997

  1. Congress has recently stripped the Council of many of its basic home rule duties and responsibilities. In light of the Council’s greatly diminished role, why are you running for the Council?

In this time of crisis, we need to earn back home rule by electing officials wiht the integrity and strength of vision to move the city forward. My background as a management consultant, youth advocate and Peace Corps volunteer has given me the combined skills to fix what wrong with DC and address some of the underlying causes. Like more and more residents dismayed by growing incompetence in city government, I feel compelled to get active and offer my candidacy.

  1. Do you agree with GLAA that our own elected officials bear much of the blame for our diminished home rule powers?

    2.

I agree that our elected officials bear much of the blame for the diminishment of home rule. But we voters are the ones who elected them, so ultimately the blame is ours. But this is not the time to be assigning blame; it is the time to be learning from past mistakes, and planning for a better future. This is the time to look forward, to identify solutions to pressing problems, and to sharpen the focus of the various parties who are running the District on the priority issues.

  1. The Council has seldom aggressively exercised its oversight powers over the District government and has been too passive and reactive in addressing the mismanagement problems that routinely plague our city’s administration. What will you do to improve the Council's performance of its oversight responsibilities?

    2.

To improve the Council's performance of its oversight responsibilities, I would like to implement a performance scorecard system for government agencies. In this system, the Council and the people and the heads of departments and agencies and the employees of those agencies will work together to define critical performance measures. For example, in the Metropolitan Police Department, one measure would be the overall crime rate, another the closure rate for murder cases, and a third might be the number of citizen complaints of police harassment. For each of the measures, we would develop a performance target to achieve in the next year; for example, the murder closure rate, currently at 42%, should increase to 50% by the end of 1997. Each department should budget to meet these performance targets. Finally, at least once per year the District should sponsor an open house event on the Mall, where members of each department would be available to explain their performance results and listen to the concerns of the citizens in the District. I model this event on the open house sponsored by the National Park Service this summer to review plans for Rock Creek Park. Hundreds of people came to the Nature Center in the park to discuss the plans with Park Service personnel. It is this kind of open, democratic exercise that we need more of in District politics.

  1. Which programs of the District government will you want to cut back or eliminate so that higher-priority programs can be adequately funded rather than be victimized by indiscriminate across-the-board budget reductions?

    2.

My experience as a management consultant with McKinsey & Co. taught me that indiscriminate, across-the-board budget cuts do more harm than good. Many agencies in government departments are understaffed and underfunded now, to the point of not being able to fulfill the functions they were established to perform. There are also agencies that are not delivering value for the dollars we currently pay in taxes to the government. We need to undertake an objective review to identify the areas that need to be cut within each department. I would start with uncompetitive contracts and excessive overtime. At the same time, we need to make intelligent investments regarding the District's assets. We need to fund projects that will enable us to collect more revenue. The District needs improved technology to be able to provide improved services at a lower cost, but it needs targeted investments, not monster contracts. The same goes for a revenue source like parking meters -- why does it cost $26 million to contract for installing tamper-proof parking meters? We should give three contracts of $1 million each to the three top vendors, and then they will compete to prove that they deserve additional business.

  1. In 1995, the Council summarily abolished the Civilian Complaint Review Board, thereby allowing the Metropolitan Police Department to handle all public complaints about excessive use of force, harassment, or abusive language by the police without any kind of independent external review or supervision. Councilmember Evans and the MPD favor a plan suggested by Booz-Allen & Hamilton to establish a complaint procedure wherein senior or retired Superior Court judges would be in charge of handling such complaints. Others fear these judges are too familiar with our police force and may not usually be able to ensure objective and unbiased investigations of complaints against the police. Will you oppose putting the judges in charge of this process?

    2.

To review civilian complaints against members of the Metropolitan Police Department, civilians should play the leading role. Judges -- retired or otherwise -- could also play a role, but should not be in charge. And perhaps a police officer from a jurisdiction outside D.C., one that has an exemplary record of dealing effectively with citizens, should also play a part. At first glance, the proposal put forth by Councilmember Sandy Allen appears to have more merit than the Booz-Allen plan, and deserves further study.

  1. The MPD, the ABC Board, and the Department of Consumer and Regulatory Affairs, and the Fire Department have been neglecting their proper duties and instead have been coordinating a relentless and deliberate campaign of harassment of singling out gay businesses. As a member of the Committee on Consumer and Regulatory Affairs, what will you do to help stop this systematic and discriminatory abuse of regulatory powers?

    2.

With appropriate performance targets, as outlined above under #3, all government agencies should have a clearer focus and plenty to do. Any instances of agencies neglecting their duties and coordinating or pursuing policies that are not a part of their jurisdiction should be investigated, and the responsible parties should be disciplined.

  1. Do you favor Initiative 57, to legalize the use of medical marijuana when a patient’s doctor recommends it as a means to combat some of the effects of AIDS, cancer, and other diseases?

    2.

I favor Initiative 57 and I signed the petition. Individuals suffering from AIDS or undergoing chemotherapy should have access to drugs that help them. But medical marijuana should be administered under tight control, so that the prescribed marijuana benefits the patient only, and only patients who genuinely do not respond to other treatment. The careful language of Initiative 57 provides for the needed controls should limit the risk of abuse.

  1. The District failed to spend $1 million of its own appropriated funds to combat AIDS in FY 1996 and had a similar problem in FY 1997. Such underspending, which jeopardizes the District’s ability to receive federal funding under the Ryan White Care Act, reflected the city’s long delay in awarding a contract for an effective needle exchange program and in implementing new programs targeted at underserved at-risk populations. As a member of the Committee on Human Services, what will you do to safeguard us against such fumbling by our health agencies?

    2.

If we want to prevent administrative fumbling, we have to keep our eyes on the ball. That's the point of the performance scorecard referenced above. One of the measures for our health agencies should be the amount of funds spent vs. appropriated to combat AIDS. It appears to be a chronic problem, requiring serious Council oversight. I would demand a plan from the Department of Human Services, with milestones defined, put one person directly in charge, and require progress reports at least monthly until the situation is corrected. Failure to perform would trigger Council action.

  1. Do you support legal recognition of marriages between persons of the same sex?

    2.

Yes, I support legal recognition of marriages between persons of the same sex. Marriage in our society brings privileges and responsibilities that should be open to couples -- same sex and opposite sex -- willing to make the necessary commitment to each other.

  1. Will you oppose efforts by Congress or other parties to stop the District of Columbia from recognizing same-sex marriages performed in Hawaii or other places?

    2.

I am heartened that Hawaii has taken the first step toward recognizing same sex marriages, and I will oppose efforts by Congress to decide for us whether to recognize such marriages.

  1. Do you oppose efforts by Congress or other parties to outlaw or restrict adoptions by unmarried couples in the District of Columbia.

    2.

Yes. We should encourage more potential parents to adopt children, and take on the responsibilities of parenting.

  1. If Congress ever repeals the D.C. Health Care Benefits Expansion Act of 1992 that established the registration of domestic partnership, will you vote to reenact the same law?

    2.

Yes. The D.C. Health Care Benefits Expansion Act has provided support and benefits to the growing diversity of households in the District. I will certainly vote to reenact the law if Congress moves to repeal it.

  1. Do you agree the Boy Scouts of America is violating the D.C. Human Rights Law’s ban on discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation by excluding gays from participating either as scouts or as leaders?

    2.

Yes. The Boy Scouts of America is a non-profit organization, benefitting from favorable Federal tax policy and from the use of District facilities. They should therefore be required to fully obey all our laws, including the D.C. Human Rights Law.

  1. As a member of the Committee on Government Operations, will you support the reestablishment of the Office of Human Rights as an independent, adequately-staffed, Cabinet-level agency whose Director has direct access to the Mayor?

    2.

Subsuming OHR under MBD makes limited sense. We should elevate it to an independent office. Regarding making the Office of Human Rights a Cabinet-level agency, we need to consider options so as not to increase the size of government beyond what the District can afford.

  1. Will you support legislation to authorize and regulate the issuance of liquor licenses to establishments (in designated nonresidential commercial districts) that want to offer nude dancing as entertainment?

Yes. Establishments in other cities offer nude dancing as entertainment and serve alcohol; we should be able to find a way to regulate such establishments effectively so they serve their clientele without adversely impacting neighboring communities.

[signed]

Phil Heinrich
November 7, 1997