The Federal Group

What The Federal Group does

The Federal Group, Inc. is a privately held government relations consulting firm founded in 1999 by Patrick Cooney and headquartered in Alexandria, Virginia. The firm serves healthcare associations, nonprofits, and health-related organizations, providing federal lobbying, policy advocacy, issue monitoring, strategic planning, grassroots and coalition building, and strategic communications services. Its seven-person senior team is composed of former White House, Congressional, and federal agency staff, with deep specialization in healthcare policy, appropriations, NIH/FDA/CDC issues, and workforce legislation. In 2025 the firm expanded its service offering with a federal grants acquisition practice and launched the Capitol Perks Podcast as an owned-media channel.

The firm operates a traditional professional services model: retainer-based engagements with healthcare associations and nonprofits, multi-year contracts, and direct senior-consultant engagement on every account. Its go-to-market is relationship-driven, anchored in 25+ years of accumulated policy contacts and a client base of over 50 current and past organizations. The firm holds no disclosed technology platform, AI tooling, patents, or proprietary data assets — its deliverables are human-delivered consulting hours and relationship capital. There is no institutional investment, no funding history, and no disclosed financial metrics.

Name

The Federal Group

Legal name

The Federal Group, Inc.

Website

https://federalgrp.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1999

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

The Federal Group is an Alexandria, Virginia-based government relations consulting firm founded in 1999 that provides federal lobbying, policy advocacy, and strategic communications services to healthcare associations, nonprofits, and health-related organizations.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Government Relations and Lobbying Consulting

NAICS

Business, Professional, Labor, Political, and Similar Organizations (8139)

SIC

Services-Management Consulting Services (8742)

akta.pro primary industry

Public Affairs, Government Relations & Lobbying (BPAFADAB)

akta.pro secondary industries

Public Sector & Policy Consulting (BPAHACAN), Policy, Regulatory & Public Affairs Research (BPAHALAF)

Keywords

• Government relations consulting
• Federal lobbying services
• Healthcare policy advocacy
• Legislative issue monitoring
• Strategic communications lobbying

Headquarters

HQ city

Washington

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Government Relations Consulting Services: Professional consulting fees for government relations, lobbying, issue monitoring, strategic planning, coalition building, and grassroots advocacy services. Revenue generated through retainer arrangements and project-based engagements with healthcare associations, nonprofits, and health-related organizations.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

The Federal Group provides federal government relations and lobbying consulting services to healthcare associations, nonprofits, medical device companies, and municipalities. Its core services include issue monitoring (tracking legislation and regulatory activity), issue development and strategic planning, direct "shoe-leather" lobbying before Congress and the Administration, grassroots and coalition building, strategic communications (op-eds, media placement, digital), and federal grants acquisition support. Engagements are delivered via retainer and project-based consulting arrangements.

Product overview

The Federal Group is a government relations consulting firm that provides a unified suite of advocacy services rather than a technology product. Its core offerings include Issue Monitoring, Issue Development & Strategic Planning, Shoe-Leather Lobbying, Grassroots and Coalition Building, and Strategic Communications services. Additionally, the firm launched the Capitol Perks Podcast in August 2025 as a content offering to share health policy insights. These services work together to assist clients in achieving their goals and objectives in the public policy arena through expert analysis, strategic planning, coalition building, and aggressive advocacy.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Issue Monitoring Monitoring service that tracks legislation being considered in the U.S. House of Representatives and U.S. Senate, as well as regulatory activity in federal agencies and departments, to keep clients informed about policy developments that may impact their missions.
• Issue Development & Strategic Planning Strategic planning service that assists clients in assessing the political and policy landscape in relation to their goals and objectives, helping maximize resources for advocacy efforts and positioning clients to succeed.
• "Shoe-Leather" Lobbying Direct advocacy service that facilitates contact with decision makers in Congress and the Administration, putting clients in front of policymakers who impact their goals and objectives through face-to-face engagement.
• Grassroots and Coalition Building Advocacy support service that designs and implements grassroots campaigns to attract policymakers' attention and brings groups together to advocate for common objectives.
• Strategic Communications Messaging amplification service that plans and crafts Capitol Hill messaging through op-eds, press releases, social media, media placement, apps, digital ads, and websites, including talking points and interview preparation.
• Federal Grants Acquisition Support Federal grants advisory and acquisition service that assists clients in identifying, applying for, and securing federal funding from agencies such as HHS, Labor, and Justice, alongside policy advisory and government relations support.
• Capitol Perks Podcast A health policy podcast launched by The Federal Group in August 2025 that delivers timely health policy updates to listeners, providing insights on health policy matters in the nation's capital.

Quantifiable outcome

• Secured over $15 million in federal funding for clients from Departments of Health and Human Services, Labor, and Justice
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers10 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves4 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Mehlman Consulting: Boutique bipartisan federal lobbying firm focused on healthcare and tax policy. Highly comparable as a similarly sized, healthcare-focused DC government relations firm competing for the same association and nonprofit clients.
• Cornerstone Government Affairs: Mid-sized DC lobbying and government relations firm with strong healthcare practice. Directly competes with The Federal Group for healthcare association retainers and federal advocacy engagements.
• BGR Group: Established bipartisan government affairs and lobbying firm with a sizable healthcare and life sciences practice. Comparable in service mix (lobbying, advocacy, strategic communications) and target client base of associations and corporations.
• Forbes Tate Partners: Strategic consulting and government relations firm serving healthcare, education, and other regulated industries. Comparable in offering integrated advocacy, communications, and coalition-building services to associations.
• Cassidy & Associates: Boutique government relations firm specializing in appropriations, defense, and healthcare. Comparable as a relationship-driven lobbying firm serving healthcare associations and nonprofit clients in Washington.
• Tarplin, Downs & Young: Boutique DC government relations firm serving healthcare, research, and nonprofit clients with integrated lobbying and policy strategy. Closely comparable in scale, client mix, and relationship-driven business model.
• Subject Matter (formerly known as Polsinelli Government Affairs): Boutique healthcare-focused government affairs and strategic communications firm. Direct competitor for healthcare association advocacy retainers with overlapping service offerings in lobbying, coalition building, and strategic communications.

Broad incumbents

• Holland & Knight (Public Policy & Regulation): Large national law firm with a substantial federal government affairs practice including a major healthcare lobbying team. Overlaps significantly with The Federal Group's healthcare association clients but offers broader legal and regulatory services.
• Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld: Major international law firm with one of the largest federal lobbying practices, including deep healthcare and life sciences policy teams. Represents the larger, more diversified end of the same market The Federal Group operates in.
• K&L Gates (Government Affairs): Global law firm with a sizable federal policy and regulatory advocacy group serving healthcare and life sciences clients. Comparable client verticals with materially greater scale and geographic reach.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/federal_group
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/thefederalgrp

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles7 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about The Federal Group