D.C. proposes looser restrictions on urban chickens

District backyards could soon resemble urban farms as the D.C. Council considers a bill that would ease long-standing restrictions on raising chickens and harvesting eggs on residential property.

Ward 6 D.C. Councilman Tommy Wells is proposing to erase rules that prohibit fowl within 50 feet of any building “used for human habitation,” a regulation that denies most District residents the opportunity to harbor hens.