Montgomery County’s new domestic workers bill falls to the county’s Office of Consumer Protection, and Director Eric Friedman said his office and its 10 investigators are increasingly being asked to administer or enforce the law.
On Consumer Protection’s to-do list, they’ve got to consult with Montgomery’s Commission on Women and then prepare and publish a model employment contract and disclosure statement for the newly crafted domestic workers bill.
Then they’ll investigate complaints against people who don’t follow the county’s new requirements to provide written contracts for most nannies, cooks and housekeepers and refer violations to hearing officers. And that’s just the most recent policy change.
New policies that require home sellers disclose the estimated value of property taxes to be paid by home buyers, if they are buying in a development district, and what their utility costs will likely be are all also depending on Friedman’s office.
“We’re going to try our best to do it all,” Friedman said. “We’re happy to be the poster child for doing more with less.”
