DC Water Drops BGR Government Affairs, Shifts Federal Lobbying to New Firm

The District of Columbia Water and Sewer Authority ended its lobbying relationship with BGR Government Affairs LLC as of December 31, 2025, according to an LDA termination filing submitted for Q1 2026. The lobbying disclosure termination caps a relationship that lasted less than a year — BGR registered to represent DC Water in March 2025 — and reported $160,000 in total compensation across three active quarters.

DC Water didn't walk away from federal lobbying altogether. It brought on theGROUP DC LLC during the same period, and that firm reported $100,000 in compensation for Q3 and Q4 2025 lobbying work focused on regional water resilience and the Water Resources Development Act.

Why the LDA Termination Matters

A Short, Modest Engagement

BGR Government Affairs' work for the District of Columbia Water and Sewer Authority was neither long-lived nor particularly lucrative. The firm reported $50,000 in Q1 2025, $80,000 in Q2, $30,000 in Q3, and $0 in Q4 before the termination filing closed the books. The $160,000 total is a small line item for a firm of BGR's size and profile — a shop founded by former RNC Chair and Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour that maintains a large and diverse client roster.

For DC Water, the total federal lobbying registration spend across both firms in 2025 was $260,000 — a fraction of the utility's roughly $926 million in annual operating revenue. But for an independent government authority that depends on hundreds of millions in federal grants and revolving fund allocations, maintaining a presence on Capitol Hill is not optional.

DC Water Kept Lobbying — Just With a Different Firm

The key detail: DC Water didn't stop its DC Water and Sewer Authority lobbying efforts. It continued working with theGROUP DC LLC, which registered in March 2025 and was actively filing through Q4 2025. That firm's lobbyists — Darrel L. Thompson and Estefania Lorena Rodriguez-Argote — focused specifically on the Water Resources Development Act and regional water resilience, according to the firm's Q4 2025 filing.

BGR's team on the account — Loren L. Monroe, Don Chris M. Andres, and Bill Viney — was tasked with broader "strategic counsel and advocacy regarding funding, regulatory and security issues before Congress and the Administration." None of the lobbyists on either team had congressional staffer experience in available records.

Broader Context: What's Happening on the Hill

The Big Win Already Happened

The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, enacted in November 2021, delivered roughly $85.6 million in federal funding to DC Water specifically for lead service line replacement between FY 2022 and FY 2024, with an estimated additional $56 million for FY 2025–2026. It also provided approximately $22.8 million for emerging contaminants in drinking water — all with a zero percent local match requirement.

That was the legislative home run. Once those dollars were authorized, appropriated, and flowing through EPA channels, the nature of DC Water's federal lobbying need changed. The utility moved from a posture of securing new funding to defending existing funding streams — a different kind of engagement that may require different relationships and expertise.

Threats to Existing Funding Are Real

A January 2026 House spending package reportedly proposed cutting lead pipe replacement funding by $250 million, a figure that was later halved after advocacy efforts. Protecting Drinking Water and Clean Water State Revolving Fund allocations remains a live concern for DC Water, which relies on these federal mechanisms to finance its capital program.

No specific legislation was cited by bill number in any of DC Water's lobbying disclosures across either firm. Instead, filings referenced broad policy areas: the Water Resources Development Act, Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act implementation, FY 2024 and FY 2025 appropriations, and clean water policy.

No Congressional Heat

There were no congressional hearings in the past year where DC Water was mentioned, and no member communications — press releases, floor statements, or official correspondence — referencing the utility were found. Whatever drove the BGR Government Affairs lobbying relationship to end, it does not appear to have been triggered by negative congressional attention.

Bottom Line

DC Water ended a brief engagement with BGR Government Affairs while maintaining its relationship with theGROUP DC LLC. The total lobbying spend across both firms was $260,000 in 2025 — modest for a utility of DC Water's scale but reflective of ongoing federal funding dependencies that aren't going away.

TheGROUP DC's focus on the Water Resources Development Act and regional water resilience suggests DC Water is narrowing its federal lobbying registration priorities to the specific policy vehicles most relevant to its infrastructure needs. Neither firm's lobbyists had documented congressional staffer backgrounds, so the switch does not appear to reflect an effort to gain insider access to particular committees or offices.

The practical reality for DC Water: the landmark infrastructure dollars are already flowing, but they need protecting. And in a Republican trifecta environment where federal spending cuts are on the table and DC-specific interests can face skepticism, the utility still needs someone making its case on the Hill. It just decided BGR wasn't the right fit for that job going forward.