(Washington, DC) – Today, Mayor Muriel Bowser announced that her Administration has launched a new District Economic Recovery Team (DERT) to proactively plan, strategize, and coordinate the economic recovery from the impacts of the coronavirus (COVID-19).
“We are all in this together, we will get through it together, and when we get to the other side, we will recover,” said Mayor Bowser. “Starting now, this team will ensure that we are pursuing every local and federal program, leveraging data and resources, and engaging with our business community to recover and bring prosperity back to our residents and businesses.”
The DERT is a cross-agency team led by the Office of the Deputy Mayor for Planning and Economic Development (DMPED) that will also engage with non-governmental partners to support businesses, employers, workers, and housing needs. The goals of the DERT are to prepare the District to effectively deploy federal funds; coordinate agency efforts to accelerate, adjust, and create local programs as coronavirus containment measures such as social distancing requirements are eventually relaxed; and make and implement long-term plans to restart the District’s social and economic spheres, informed by the insights of other jurisdictions, economists, and practitioners. The DERT will coordinate with the recovery efforts of the District’s Homeland Security and Emergency Management Agency.
“The DERT is proactively engaging and coordinating with public and private sector partners to prepare for our economic recovery,” said Acting Deputy Mayor for Planning and Economic Development John Falcicchio. “Our community is full of leaders and thinkers who care deeply about our city and our residents, and the DERT will be leveraging their expertise and engagement.”
This morning, at a daily briefing on the District’s response to COVID-19, Mayor Bowser and Administration officials shared information about benefits and resources available to residents and businesses during the public health emergency. Already, Mayor Bowser and the Council of the District of Columbia have invested $25 million in the COVID-19 Recovery Effort and the DC Small Business Recovery Microgrants Program, which is also housed in DMPED. More than 7,600 businesses and nonprofits from at least 13 different industries applied to receive a microgrant.
The DERT will be the central point of coordination for recommendations and ideas that could advance the District’s economic recovery. Recommendations can be shared at DC Economic Recovery Team.
For more information on the District’s COVID-19 response and recovery efforts, visit coronavirus.dc.gov.