Advisory Neighborhood Commissions (ANCs) are bodies of local government in the District of Columbia, the capital city of the United States. The ANC system was created in 1974 through a referendum (73 percent voted "yes") in the District of Columbia Home Rule Act.[1] The first elections for Advisory Neighborhood Commissioners were held in the fall of 1975, and commissions began operating in 1976.[2] Congressman Don Fraser (D-Minn) and D.C. resident Milton Kotler helped to draft the ANC language in the Home Rule Act based on the success of Adams Morgan Organization (AMO) in Adams Morgan and on a 1970 report of the Minneapolis Citizen League, as well as on related neighborhood corporations in Pittsburgh; Brooklyn, New York; Chicago; and Columbus, Ohio.[3][4][5]
ANCs consider a wide range of policies and programs affecting their neighborhoods, including traffic, parking, recreation, street improvements, liquor licenses, zoning, economic development, police protection, sanitation and trash collection, and the district's annual budget. Commissioners serve two-year terms and receive no salary, but commissions do receive funds for the general purpose of improving their area and hiring staff.[6] This policy has come under scrutiny because of the misuse of funds by commissioners and their employees.[7] Candidates can accept campaign donations up to $25 per person.[8]
As of 2023, ANCs represent more than 100 neighborhoods.[9]
Powers
The powers of the ANC system are enumerated by the DC Code § 1–207.38:
May advise the District government on matters of public policy including decisions regarding planning, streets, recreation, social services programs, health, safety, and sanitation in that neighborhood commission area;
May employ staff and expend, for public purposes within its neighborhood commission area, public funds and other funds donated to it; and
Shall have such other powers and duties as may be provided by act of the council.
The ANCs present their positions and recommendations on issues to various District government agencies, the Executive Branch, and the council. They also present testimony to independent agencies, boards, and commissions, usually under the rules of procedure specific to those entities. By law, the ANCs may present their positions to Federal agencies. One of the most common cases of ANC involvement is in the giving of liquor licenses, where the approval or disapproval of the commission, despite having no legal power, represents a veto to the district government.[10]
Membership and qualifications
Each ANC Commissioner is nominated and elected by the registered voters who reside in the same Single Member District as the candidate. The ANC Commissioner is an official representing her or his neighborhood community (Single Member District) on the Advisory Neighborhood Commission.
In order to hold the office of Advisory Neighborhood Commissioner, an individual must be a registered voter (or must be able to register to vote within two years) in the District, as defined by DC Code Section 1-1001.02; have resided continuously in the Single Member District from which they are nominated for the 60-day period immediately preceding the day on which the nominating petition is filed; and hold no other public office. In order to enter the public ballot, they must receive 25 signatures from registered voters in their district.[11]
Single Member Districts
The basic area of Advisory Neighborhood Commissions are Single Member Districts. There are 299 Single Member Districts,[12] which in turn are subdivisions of 39 'Commission Districts',[13] which are in turn subdivisions of Wards. Each Commissioner represents about 2,000 residents in their Single Member District (SMD) area.
Due to population growth and redistribution, these boundaries often change, causing shifts in power and election turnout.[14]
Single Member Districts are named according to Ward, Subdivision, and then Single Member District. For instance, 3B05 is Ward 3, subdivision B, and SMD 05.
^Garrison, David F. (2011). "District of Columbia's Elected Advisory Neighborhood Commissions: An Unlikely Experiment in Governance at the Grassroots". State & Local Government Review. 43 (2): 159–166. doi:10.1177/0160323X11416074. JSTOR 41303187. S2CID 155798683.
^Garrison, David F. (2011). "District of Columbia's Elected Advisory Neighborhood Commissions: An Unlikely Experiment in Governance at the Grassroots". State & Local Government Review. 43 (2): 159–166. doi:10.1177/0160323X11416074. JSTOR 41303187. S2CID 155798683.
^Gibson, Josh; Nahikian, Marie (March 23, 2020). "A Minnesota congressman is one reason we have ANCs. But the true inspiration was the spirited tradition of activism of Adams Morgan". The DC Line.
^Garrison, David F. (2011). "District of Columbia's Elected Advisory Neighborhood Commissions: An Unlikely Experiment in Governance at the Grassroots". State & Local Government Review. 43 (2): 159–166. doi:10.1177/0160323X11416074. JSTOR 41303187. S2CID 155798683.
^Kotler, Milton (10 July 2019). "ECCO bene: Organizing Neighborhood Government Milton Kotler—father of the ANC".
^"Employment Opportunities". DC Government. Archived from the original on 10 October 2016. Retrieved 20 October 2016.
^DeBonis, Mike (2012-04-27). "William Shelton gets 30 days for theft of ANC funds". Washington Post. Retrieved 22 January 2013.
^"ANC Elections". DC Government. Retrieved 24 January 2013.