There’s “substantial evidence” that embattled DC Council member Trayon White accepted bribes in exchange for influencing government officials to renew city contracts, according to a new report into White’s dealings released Wednesday.

White was arrested in August and is scheduled to stand trial on a federal bribery charge in 2026. Then, council members requested an independent probe to determine whether White violated any council rules.

In a 48-page report, put together by law firm Latham & Watkins, investigators say that White accepted $35,000 in cash from someone who operated several businesses holding or seeking contracts with D.C., or received subgrants or subcontracts from businesses that contracted with the city.

White accepted cash payments for agreeing to meet with and influence government officials, the report said, adding that he reviewed a ledger outlining the profits he expected to make, including a 3% cut for the grant renewals that he helped secure.

The report also says White met with government and agency employees to discuss contract renewals and contracts that an unnamed person had interest in.

Now, the council’s Ad Hoc Committee is scheduled to meet Monday morning to deliberate and consider recommending sanctions based on the report’s findings.

Through a spokeswoman, White declined to comment on the firm’s report.

White didn’t participate in interviews during the firm’s investigation, and didn’t provide certain documents that investigators requested.

“The report concludes that there is substantial evidence that Councilmember Trayon White engaged in conduct that violated several provisions of the D.C. Code of Conduct, including multiple rules within the D.C. Council’s Code of Official Conduct, with respect to the bribery allegations,” Ad Hoc committee chair Kenyan McDuffie said.

Council investigators also found substantial evidence that White engaged in behavior that has to be disclosed on yearly financial disclosure statements.

Council members have to consider whether there’s substantial evidence before considering actions. The substantial evidence standard, the report said, is different than the standard of proof used in White’s criminal case.

Meanwhile, while White has a connection to a property in Navy Yard, there’s not “substantial evidence” that he violated the council’s residency requirement, the report found.

Despite allegations White had been living there, investigators found White’s ownership of a Southeast property is “well-documented through property records and staff interviews.”

“The report also concludes that, while the investigation identified substantial evidence connecting Councilmember Trayon White to the 10K Hill South apartments, located in Ward 6, there is not substantial evidence to indicate that Councilmember White violated the residency requirements for councilmembers, as outlined in the District of Columbia Home Rule Act of 1973,” McDuffie’s statement said.

This fall, White won reelection against a Republican challenger, Nate Derenge. His win followed a not guilty plea in September. He’s accused of being caught on video taking cash from a business owner.

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The local government and the incoming Republican trifecta at the federal level have a common interest in getting federal workers back into offices. Since the COVID-19 pandemic, a significant number of federal workers have not fully returned to in-office work, which D.C. officials said has hurt the local economy.

“We strongly support return to office efforts for federal workers. Their presence is vital for D.C.’s economy and provides essential support for small businesses that have been hit hard by remote work policies. Undoubtedly, this will be a benefit to both the vibrancy of our nation’s capital and the American people as a whole,” Bowser said in her prepared testimony to the committee.

When asked by Rep. Ashley Hinson (R-IA) if the city is prepared for a return to work, Bowser said it is, noting that public transportation would likely be the most affected by the change.

“Yes, we are ready, and in fact, we have had that conversation with Metro. I think the biggest impact would be on our public transportation system. And unlike some places, Metro has leaned into frequency, leaned into more and optimized bus routes so that we are prepared to carry our workers, visitors, and residents,” Bowser said Tuesday.

The D.C. Metro has gradually improved frequency and service for its trains and buses since the end of the pandemic, with the transit agency getting permission from its safety watchdog to begin to use its automated train system at faster speeds for the first time since 2009 on Tuesday. The use of the automated train system is expected to increase efficiency and service, along with cost savings for the transit agency.

D.C. local government officials are required to work in the office four days a week, while some Republican politicians have pushed for federal workers to return full-time as several federal buildings are left largely vacant. The city has expressed an interest in converting unused buildings into mixed-use developments but has also pushed for workers to return to help with the local economy.

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Sen. Joni Ernst (R-IA), a leading Senate supporter of the incoming Trump administration’s Department of Government Efficiency, released a report last week about federal employees’ use of remote working as the pandemic creeps further into the past.

“Bureaucrats have been found in a bubble bath, on the golf course, running their own business, and even getting busted doing crime while on taxpayers’ time,” the report said, while also accusing many federal bureaucrats of “phoning it in.”

Photo Credit: Rey Lopez

The second annual MICHELIN Guide Ceremony brought together New York, Chicago and Washington, D.C. for a night of excitement on December 9. Here are the newest winners for Washington DC and Chicago!

WASHINGTON D.C.

Photo Credit: Rey Lopez

Two eateries receive one MICHELIN Star for first time in DC, while Oyster Oyster earned a MICHELIN Green Star. “The MICHELIN Guide Inspection team is delighted to add both Mita and Omakase at Barrack’s Row to the MICHELIN Star family,” Poullennec said. “In addition to these restaurants, it’s evident the culinary scene in Washinton, D.C. continues to focus its passion on sustainable gastronomy, with a new MICHELIN Green Star being awarded to Oyster Oyster.”

Those restaurants are as follows:

Mita (Vegetarian/Latin American cuisine)

Latin American cuisine, only plant based. That’s the premise behind this contemporary space set in the Shaw neighborhood. It’s tasting menu only, but short and long formats ensure a fit. Chefs Tatiana Mora and Miguel Guerra share their creative spirit here, where influences span from Brazil and Bolivia to Colombia and dishes sport originality. A basket of arepas is a fun dish featuring a variety of textures and flavors with tasty sauces like guasacaca, cashew sour cream with chili oil, and butter made of chontaduro. Watermelon crudo with fermented carrot in a cucumber leche de tigre sauce is inventive and bold, while a slice of mushroom terrine wrapped in greens with layers of potato delivers on umami, bite after bite.

Omakase at Barrack’s Row (Japanese/Sushi cuisine)

Chef Yi “Ricky” Wang, who trained under Chef Nakazawa before running a series of pop-ups, is now settled in at this counter, located up a set of metal stairs in an industrial-chic space. Take special note of the paintings that line that staircase—they’re nods to a longstanding tradition of fishermen brushing their catch with ink and pressing it into rice paper—and you may be presented with a similar piece at your meal. Chef Wang’s omakase features a few otsumami, perhaps poached sweet shrimp in a smoked Maine uni sauce, before progressing to nigiri. It’s all impressive, from the Boston surf clam finished with kumquat kosho to the hay-smoked Spanish mackerel sourced from the Carolinas that’s bold but balanced.

MICHELIN Green Star

Oyster Oyster (Vegetarian/Contemporary cuisine)

Chef Rob Rubba delivers a focused vegetarian/vegan cuisine, with ingredients sourced locally from small organic and regenerative farms. The restaurant also boasts a rooftop garden, which supplies herbs, flowers and tender greens for the menu. The kitchen recycles spent cooking oil by turning it into candle wax and their menus are printed on recycled paper embedded with wildflower seeds. The kitchen operates on induction and electric cooking equipment with zero waste cooking techniques and no single use plastics.

CHICAGO

Photo Credit: Kelly Sando

Cariño stole the spotlight earning one MICHELIN Star for Mexican cuisine. Said Gwendal Poullennec, the International Director of the MICHELIN Guides, “The Inspectors were unanimously impressed with Chef Norman Fenton’s creations, which celebrate Mexican cuisine in an ambitious manner. Our Inspectors were delighted by the bold and creative tasting menu in addition to the diligent and engaging service from the restaurant’s staff.”

Photo Credit: Kelly Sando

The guide says: In a cozy corner of Uptown where the train rumbles overhead, Chef Norman Fenton mines his history and his travels to celebrate Mexican cuisine in a distinct, ambitious manner. Quickly, the courses compound: a stunning huitlacoche ravioli with fried corn silk, then a queso truffle quesadilla, and at some point, a lamb tartare tostada seasoned in the style of al pastor. Indeed, this tasting menu features boldness and creativity in spades, starting with “chips and salsa” in the form of salsa verde jelly and a tortilla crumble.

Photo Credit: Kelly Sando