WASHINGTON — D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser signed a new executive order Tuesday that takes aim at sexual harassment among District employees.
District officials told reporters during a closed-door session that the new order updates her 2017 sexual harassment policies and falls in line with updated federal and local legislation changed in 2022.
“With this Mayor’s Order, we are underscoring the message that D.C. Government does not and will not tolerate any form of sexual harassment. While that has always been our value, now we are putting in place an even stronger and clearer policy,” Mayor Bowser said in a statement.
The 24-page order bans sexual and romantic relationships between supervisors and employees in their chain of command. District officials say that before, these types of relationships were "strongly discouraged". Although some chains of command will be clear, officials said Tuesday that each agency will define what the structure looks like.
The order indicates that banning these types of relationships is, "to prevent real or perceived impropriety, favoritism, conflicts of interest due to power dynamics."
Couples in sexual or romantic relationships who wish to keep their current roles will first have to disclose their relationship and are able to submit a waiver for consideration.
Under Bowser's new policies, all District employees will be required to complete sexual harassment training annually instead of every other year like before.
The order also expands the definition of sexual harassment saying that conduct, “need not be severe or pervasive to constitute harassment” and “no specific number of incidents or specific level of egregiousness is required.”
A Bowser Administration official said that the new definition was used by the Mayor's Office of Legal Counsel to investigate the accusations against Bowser's former Deputy Mayor of Planning and Economic Development John Falcicchio.
Two internal investigations determined that Falcicchio sexually harassed two staffers, but he is not facing criminal charges.
The lawyers representing the two victims applauded the revised sexual harassment policy because it provides for the possibility of an independent investigation for any official who directly reports to the mayor. The order also clarifies reporting and investigatory procedures.
“While work remains to be done to build a workplace free from sexual harassment in the D.C. government, the new policy is a significant step forward in achieving that goal. It is also the direct result of the tremendous bravery and persistence of our clients, who came forward to report sexual harassment by former Deputy Mayor John Falcicchio," lawyers Debra S. Katz and Kayla Morin added.
The executive order also creates a Sexual Harassment Task Force that will advise on policies. The group includes various government representatives including members from the Office of Human Rights and Office of Legal Counsel.
District agencies will be required to quantify and track sexual assault accusations and investigations, but according to officials, it will be up to the task force to determine whether this information will be released to the public.