D.C. Code § 48-104

(a) It shall be the duty of the Mayor to adopt such measures as may be necessary to facilitate the enforcement of this chapter with regard to the proper method of collecting and examining drugs and articles of food in the District of Columbia.
(b) The Mayor of the District of Columbia, with the approval of the Council, is authorized to adopt the United States Food and Drug Administration’s Model Food Code, with any necessary amendments, to:
(1) Control and regulate the retail sale, commercial and institutional service, and vending of food;
(2) Establish standards for employee food safety practices and training;
(3) Regulate food sources, preparation, holding temperatures, and protection;
(4) Regulate equipment, utensils, and linens, their design, construction, number and capacity, location and installation, maintenance and operation, cleaning, and sanitization;
(5) Regulate the use of water and the treatment of liquid and solid wastes;
(6) Regulate facilities construction and maintenance, storage and use of poisonous and toxic materials;
(7) Establish license requirements for the operation of food establishments;
(8) Restrict or exclude employees;
(9) Examine, embargo, and condemn food or food products, equipment, utensils, and linens to protect the public health.
(c) The Mayor shall submit the United States Food and Drug Administration’s Model Food Code, with any necessary amendments, to the Council for a 45-day period of review, excluding Saturdays, Sundays, legal holidays, and days of Council recess. If the Council does not approve or disapprove the proposed regulations, in whole or in part, by resolution, within this 45-day review period, the proposed regulations shall be deemed disapproved.