Photo by M.V. Jantzen

The D.C. Council met today for its monthly legislative session, where it considered a number of bills. Here are some highlights:

• Gun-Owning Made a Little Easier: The D.C. Council voted in favor of legislation that would make registering a gun in the District just a tad bit easier. No longer will a five-hour-long training class be required, nor will residents have to undergo a vision test and give up their guns for a ballistics test.
• No Medical Marijuana Cultivation Centers in Ward 7!: An attempt by Councilmember Yvette Alexander (D-Ward 7) to derail a single cultivation center applicant in her bailiwick failed after she refused to accept a compromise amendment introduced by Councilmember David Catania (I-At Large) and received pushback from Councilmembers Phil Mendelson (D-At Large) and Jim Graham (D-Ward 1), both of who complained that the rules of the city’s nascent medical marijuana program were constantly being changed. D.C. Council Chair Kwame Brown convinced Alexander to pull back the legislation until the end of the month, when the Department of Health is expected to grant licenses for the 10 planned cultivation centers.
• Everyone Loves D.C. United: The council voted to approve a symbolic resolution pledging that the city would do what it could to keep D.C. United from fleeing someplace else. (As soon as the vote happened, both D.C. Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton and Mayor Vince Gray released statements pledging their own support for our local soccer squad.) The only dissent came from Mendelson, who worried that the language was vague enough that there could be some misunderstanding that the city would kick in to build D.C. United a new stadium.
• Brick My Cell Phone, Please: The council also approved a symbolic resolution asking that national cell phone providers and the FCC work more quickly to set up a program through which stolen cell phones can be permanently disabled, effectively making them useless. D.C. Police Chief Cathy Lanier has also been pushing the measure in recent months; according to her, thefts of electronic devices has become a serious problem that needs to be addressed.
• Preventing Another South Capitol Street Shooting: In the wake of the 2010 South Capitol Street shooting, Catania has worked on comprehensive legislation addressing mental health services for public school students and tamping down on truancy. The bill was approved on a first vote today, just as the trial of the suspects continues in Superior Court.
• Fresh Food Trucks, Paid for by the Feds: Some of the city’s poorest areas lack both sit-down restaurants and healthy foods. How to resolve the two? Food trucks! The council moved on a pilot program funded by a $100,000 federal stimulus grant that would bring 15 mobile fresh produce carts to wards 5, 7 and 8. Councilmember Muriel Bowser (D-Ward 4) voted against, saying that since the rest of the city’s food trucks are waiting patiently for new rules to be hashed out, these shouldn’t be allowed to jump the line.