Niemela Pappas & Associates

What Niemela Pappas & Associates does

Niemela Pappas & Associates (NPA) is a women-owned, full-service California lobbying and advocacy firm founded in late 2014 by partners Erin Niemela and Emily Pappas, headquartered at 915 L Street, Suite 1130 in Sacramento. The firm provides strategic counsel, direct lobbying before the California State Legislature, Governor's office and state agencies, procurement advocacy, political consulting and grassroots organizing, and state budget and grant advocacy. NPA serves a horizontal mix of clients including Fortune 500 companies (John Deere, FanDuel, Indeed, Anthropic), innovative startups, local governments, utilities, and non-profits across 14+ sector verticals ranging from clean energy and water resources to technology, life sciences, manufacturing, transportation, and entertainment.

The firm is built on Capitol relationships and insider credentials: combined 40+ years of government experience across the founders, with senior staff drawn from the offices of the California Senate President Pro Tem, the Speaker of the House, House and Senate committee staff, and Presidential administrations. NPA generates revenue through professional services fees (retainer- and engagement-based) for legislative representation, regulatory navigation, budget and grant advocacy, and procurement positioning; pricing is not publicly disclosed. Notable recorded outcomes include securing two of the three CEQA exemptions in state history, sponsoring legislation creating the solar industry tax break, leading coalition passage of the 33% renewable portfolio standard, extending the state's film tax credit, securing millions in water infrastructure funding, and winning greenhouse gas reduction funds for old truck replacement.

Operationally, NPA is a partner-led boutique with a 1-10 employee footprint, no outside investors, no funding rounds, no parent company, and no disclosed subsidiaries. Distribution is direct and field-based: in-person advocacy in Sacramento augmented by a referral and relationship-led go-to-market motion, with a WordPress-based content presence at npalobby.com. The firm has no technology platform, no API, no proprietary software, no AI/ML capabilities, no patent portfolio, and no published financial statements; it operates as a pure-play professional services firm whose moat is the personal credibility and political relationships of its named lobbyists.

Name

Niemela Pappas & Associates

Legal name

Niemela Pappas & Associates

Website

https://npalobby.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2014

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Niemela Pappas & Associates is a women-owned Sacramento-based lobbying and advocacy firm that represents Fortune 500 companies, startups, local governments, utilities, and non-profits before the California State Legislature, Governor's office, and state agencies on legislative, regulatory, budget, and procurement matters.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Sacramento

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

Revenue model

1. Lobbying and Advocacy Services: Professional lobbying and advocacy services provided to clients before California State Legislature, Governor's office and state agencies. Revenue generated through consulting fees for legislative representation, regulatory navigation, and political strategy services.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels1 record

Core offering

Niemela Pappas & Associates is a women-owned, full-service advocacy firm that represents clients before the California State Legislature, the Governor's office, and state agencies. Its integrated offerings include Strategic Counsel, Lobbying Services, Procurement Advocacy, Political Consulting/Grassroots organizing, and State Budget/Grant Advocacy, delivered through tailored strategies rather than boilerplate approaches. The firm serves Fortune 500 companies, innovative startups, local governments, utilities, and non-profits across sectors such as technology, clean energy, water, agriculture, life sciences, transportation, manufacturing, and entertainment.

Product overview

Niemela Pappas & Associates (NPA) is a women-owned, full-service lobbying and advocacy firm offering a unified suite of professional services focused on navigating California's legislative and regulatory processes. The firm's core offerings include Strategic Counsel, Lobbying Services, Procurement Advocacy, Political Consulting/Grassroots, and State Budget/Grant Advocacy. These services work together as an integrated advocacy package, with strategies developed first and tailored to each client's objectives before the California State Legislature, Governor's office, and State Agencies. The firm serves diverse client sectors including Technology, Financial Services, Clean Energy & Climate Change, Water & Natural Resources, Agriculture/Food & Beverages, Life Sciences, Local Government, Post-Secondary Education, Transportation/Goods Movement & Logistics, Manufacturing, Land Use & Housing, Entertainment & Media, and Non-profits.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Strategic Counsel Development of innovative, collaborative, and out-of-the-box strategies tailored to client objectives and California's political landscape. Sold as part of NPA's integrated advocacy package to enterprises, startups, local governments, utilities, and non-profits.
• Lobbying Services
• Procurement Advocacy
• Political Consulting / Grassroots
• State Budget / Grant Advocacy

Quantifiable outcome

• Secured two of three CEQA exemptions in the state's history
• +6 more outcomes

Named customers10 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Townsend Public Affairs: California-based public affairs and lobbying firm with offices in Sacramento and statewide, providing legislative advocacy and grant procurement services. Directly comparable in services and target client profile.
• Lang Hansen O'Malley & Miller: Sacramento government affairs and lobbying firm providing legislative and regulatory representation to corporate and association clients. Directly comparable in service mix and California market focus.
• KP Public Affairs: Sacramento-based public affairs firm providing legislative advocacy, regulatory affairs, and procurement services. Directly comparable boutique with similar Fortune 500 client focus.
• Sloat Higgins Jensen & Associates: Sacramento-based government relations firm providing legislative advocacy, regulatory representation, and procurement advocacy. Directly comparable boutique firm with similar client mix and California-only geographic scope.
• California Strategies & Advocacy: Sacramento-based government relations firm providing lobbying, regulatory, and procurement services to corporate clients. Directly comparable boutique with similar client base.
• Kadesh & Associates: Long-standing Sacramento lobbying firm with deep Capitol relationships representing Fortune 500 and association clients. Directly comparable in advocacy focus and California-only operations.
• Capitol Advocacy: Sacramento-based lobbying and government affairs firm representing corporate, association, and local government clients before the California Legislature. Directly comparable in service mix (lobbying, budget advocacy, procurement) and target clients.
• Aaron Read & Associates: Sacramento lobbying firm representing local governments and corporations before the California Legislature. Directly comparable in advocacy services and Sacramento-centric positioning.

Broad incumbents

• Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld: International law firm with a prominent government affairs and federal/state lobbying practice. Comparable to NPA's lobbying and policy advocacy services, but operates across multiple states and globally with a much larger bench.
• Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck: National law and lobbying firm with a substantial Sacramento government relations practice. Comparable to NPA's Sacramento lobbying and regulatory advocacy, but operates nationally and is significantly larger with broader service offerings.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/niemela-pappas-associates

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles8 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 Niemela Pappas & Associates