Office of the People’s Counsel

What Office of the People’s Counsel does

The Office of the People's Counsel (OPC) is an independent agency of the District of Columbia government that serves as the statutory consumer advocate for residential and small commercial utility ratepayers in the District. Originally established in 1926 and reestablished in its current form in 1975, OPC intervenes in regulatory proceedings before the DC Public Service Commission, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), and—since a 2019 statutory expansion—water and wastewater matters before DC Water's regulator. Its core functions include formal complaints, settlement negotiation, expert testimony, technical investigation, and consumer education.

The agency's operational model rests on three service lines: (1) formal regulatory advocacy in rate cases, complaints, and rulemakings; (2) consumer education and outreach conducted in eight languages across District neighborhoods; and (3) collaboration with regional utility-oversight organizations such as the Consumer Advocates of the PJM States (CAPS) and other state consumer advocate networks. It maintains a technical staff of economists, engineers, and attorneys who conduct independent cost-of-service analyses, audit utility rate filings, and produce reports on issues such as Washington Gas system safety and PJM capacity-market reforms.

Funding flows through annual appropriations from the DC government budget rather than commercial revenue. The agency operates with approximately 50 staff from a single DC location (relocated in 2022). All of OPC's "customers" are by definition the residential and small commercial ratepayers of Pepco, Washington Gas, DC Water, and related carriers operating within the District, which means revenue (appropriations) predictability is high absent a policy shift but the addressable footprint is structurally capped.

Name

Office of the People’s Counsel

Legal name

Office of the People's Counsel

Website

https://opc-dc.gov

Company type

Private

Founded year

1975

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

The Office of the People's Counsel is an independent DC government agency that advocates for residential and small commercial utility ratepayers in regulatory proceedings before the DC Public Service Commission, FERC, and DC Water, providing free intervention, expert analysis, and consumer education.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Washington

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices4 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Revenue model

1. Government Appropriations: OPC is an independent agency of the District of Columbia government funded through annual budget appropriations. Services to consumers are provided free of charge.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

No source data was provided in the input; a factual description of the core offering cannot be supported by attributable evidence.

Product overview

The Office of the People's Counsel is a District of Columbia government agency that functions as a consumer advocacy organization rather than a commercial product company. OPC provides free consumer services including complaint filing assistance, utility bill calculators (electricity, gas, and water), and legal representation for ratepayers. The agency offers advocacy resources such as the DC Water Consumer Bill of Rights, solar programs, and climate action initiatives. OPC's services are organized around core advocacy functions for electric (Pepco), natural gas (Washington Gas), water (DC Water), and telephone (Verizon) utilities, with no commercial software products or modules.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Quantifiable outcome

• Won $2.4 million for Washington Gas rate payers in rate case
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Eleven partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Consumer Advocates of the PJM States, Inc.coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerOPC is a member of Consumer Advocates of the PJM States, Inc., an organization of consumer advocate offices in the PJM footprint that helps coordinate and leverage consumer representation in the PJM stakeholder process. This membership enables OPC to collectively advocate for DC ratepayer interests in regional transmission planning and wholesale electric market proceedings.
• PJM Interconnection LLCcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerOPC is a member of PJM Interconnection LLC, the grid operator for the Mid-Atlantic region serving 67 million people across 13 states. OPC actively participates in PJM stakeholder meetings and votes on behalf of District ratepayer interests in regional transmission planning and market operations.
• Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerOPC regularly litigates before FERC, the federal agency responsible for overseeing the nation's wholesale electric markets. OPC also meets with FERC Commissioners and staff and participates in technical conferences to highlight policy implications for DC ratepayers.
• Delaware Division of the Public AdvocateminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerOPC works jointly with Delaware Division of the Public Advocate on regional consumer advocacy matters, including filing briefs opposing petitions at FERC.
• Maryland Office of People's CounselminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerOPC collaborates with Maryland Office of People's Counsel on joint regulatory advocacy efforts at FERC regarding data center costs and transmission allocation.
• New Jersey Division of Rate CounselminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerOPC works jointly with New Jersey Division of Rate Counsel on regional consumer advocacy matters at FERC and federal courts.
• DC Public Service CommissioncoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerOPC represents DC ratepayer interests before the DC PSC in matters involving rates, service quality, and utility regulation. OPC advocates for policy positions ensuring utility service is affordable, safe, adequate, and reliable.
• Federal Communications Commission (FCC)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerOPC advocates on behalf of District consumers before the FCC through membership on the FCC's Consumer Advisory Committee on behalf of NASUCA. OPC participates in FCC working groups on robocalls, broadband labeling, and consumer protection issues.
• DC Water Board of DirectorscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerOPC serves as statutory representative of DC Water ratepayers and consumers in rulemaking proceedings before the DC Water Board of Directors, advocating for affordable water and sewer services.
• District Department of Energy & Environment (DOEE)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerOPC actively participates in DOEE's Solar for All Task Force and transportation electrification roadmap to ensure consumer voices are included in District climate initiatives.
• Greater Washington Urban LeagueminorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerThe Greater Washington Urban League administers the SPLASH program for DC Water, helping customers maintain water and sewer service during financial emergencies through OPC-referred assistance.

Scale indicators10 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Others

• Earthjustice: National nonprofit environmental law organization that litigates before courts and regulatory bodies on climate and energy matters. Adjacent in the legal-advocacy posture OPC brings to FERC climate proceedings, though with a broader environmental remit.
• National Association of State Utility Consumer Advocates (NASUCA): Coalition of state utility consumer advocate offices (including OPC, which represents DC via NASUCA on the FCC Consumer Advisory Committee). Ecosystem-level peer that aggregates and amplifies the work of agencies like OPC.

Direct peers

• Pennsylvania Office of Consumer Advocate: Independent Pennsylvania state agency advocating for utility consumers before the PA PUC and federal regulators. Direct functional peer with similar statutory authority, multi-utility remit, and rate-case litigation model.
• Ohio Office of the Consumers' Counsel: Ohio's state utility consumer advocate representing residential and small business utility customers before the PUCO and FERC. Comparable function, scope (electric/gas/water/telecom), and litigation-heavy operating model.
• Maryland Office of People's Counsel: Statutory Maryland state-level utility ratepayer advocate with the same statutory mission — representing consumers in rate cases, FERC proceedings, and before the Maryland PSC. OPC explicitly collaborates with this office on PJM data center cost complaints.
• New Jersey Division of Rate Counsel: New Jersey's independent state division representing ratepayers in utility proceedings. OPC works jointly with Rate Counsel on FERC and federal court matters, making it a closely analogous statutory consumer advocate.
• Delaware Division of the Public Advocate: Delaware's state-level utility consumer advocate representing ratepayers before regulatory bodies and FERC. OPC has an established joint advocacy relationship with this office on regional consumer matters.
• Illinois Citizens Utility Board: Independent Illinois state agency representing residential and small business utility customers before the ICC and FERC. Closely analogous in mission, statutory advocacy role, and consumer education/outreach functions.

Broad incumbents

• Consumer Reports: Established national consumer advocacy and information organization. Comparable in the consumer education, complaint support, and policy advocacy functions, though much broader in scope than OPC's utility-only mandate.
• DC Public Service Commission: The District's regulator for utility rates and service quality. While not a peer advocate, it sits on the same side of regulatory dockets where OPC litigates and is the principal decision-maker in the cases OPC influences.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/dcopc
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCbRaMJ-oDD5bA2D2Xg4R8ug
• Facebookfacebook.com/DCPeoplesCounsel
• Instagraminstagram.com/dcopc/?hl=en

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Office of the People’s Counsel