(a) The Executive Director shall:

(1) Serve as an advocate for the needs of the District's African American community, as those needs relate to housing, health, education, employment, social services, public safety, and expanding business opportunities;

(2) Assist community organizations in developing and submitting grant applications;

(3) Provide information and technical assistance on programs and services for the African American community to the Mayor, the Council, Advisory Neighborhood Commissions, other District government agencies, and the community;

(4) Respond to recommendations and policy statements from the Commission on African American Affairs ("CAAA"), established by Chapter 14B of Title 3;

(5) File with the Mayor and Council, no later than December 31 annually, an annual report on the operations of OAAA based on the previous fiscal year;

(6) Identify areas for service improvement and bring these areas to the attention of the Mayor and CAAA, with recommendations for how to meet any needs, including conducting or funding research and demonstration projects to test the recommendations; and

(7) Ensure the necessary control, evaluation, audit, and reporting on programs funded through OAAA.

(b) The Executive Director may:

(1) Accept volunteer services and funds from the public and private sectors to supplement the budget of OAAA in carrying out its planning duties and responsibilities;

(2) Apply for, receive, and expend gifts or grants of money to carry out the duties and responsibilities of OAAA; and

(3) Issue grants to organizations that provide housing, education, health, workforce development, employment, criminal justice reform, and economic opportunity-related services to the District's African American residents; provided, that grants shall be administered pursuant to the requirements set forth in part B of subchapter XII-A of Chapter 3 of Title 1.

(Feb. 17, 2018, D.C. Law 22-59, § 3, 65 DCR 2.)