WGL- Government Affairs Specialist - DC

Washington Gas; Washington (District of Columbia); On-site; USD 95,400 - 138,075; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health insurance

Retirement plans

Paid time off

Job summary

Washington Gas seeks a Public Affairs professional to manage a local government portfolio in DC, building sustained relationships with elected officials, staff, and community stakeholders to support state-level strategies.

The role focuses on outreach, issue tracking, and collaboration with the Public Affairs Lead, requiring a Bachelor's degree and 3+ years in public affairs or related field.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Political Science, Business Administration or related field.
• 3+ years of experience in corporate public affairs or related field.
• Experience with local government and legislative processes.

Responsibilities

• Support public affairs activities focused on local governments and municipalities by assisting with outreach and relationship coordination.
• Help manage defined local government portfolios by tracking local issues and escalating concerns to Public Affairs leadership.
• Assist in building and maintaining relationships with local officials, staff, and stakeholders through meetings and follow-up support.
• Track and document local policy, permitting, and community initiatives to inform state-level strategies.
• Coordinate logistics for meetings, events, and community engagements.

Skills

Public policy

Stakeholder relations

Negotiation

Policy analysis

Communication

Business acumen

Education

Bachelor's degree in Political Science or related field

Tools

Microsoft Office

Job description

Job Description

JOB SUMMARY: This position will focus on DC local governments, and municipalities—an area of growing importance to our policy/legislative infrastructure, permitting, and community-based initiatives. This role would manage a defined local- government portfolio and build sustained relationships with elected officials, staff, and community stakeholders. This role reports into the Public Affairs Lead for their respective states, providing needed capacity to proactively manage local issues, elevate concerns earlier, and better support our state-level strategies.

Primary Duties

• Support public affairs activities focused on local governments, counties, and municipalities by assisting with outreach, issue tracking, and relationship coordination.
• Help manage defined local government portfolios by tracking local issues, monitoring council and committee activity, and escalating concerns to Public Affairs leadership as appropriate.
• Assist in building and maintaining relationships with local elected officials, staff, and community stakeholders through meeting coordination, correspondence, and follow-up support.
• Track and document local policy, permitting, and community-based initiatives, preparing summaries and basic analysis to inform state-level strategies and advocacy efforts.
• Coordinate logistics for meetings, events, and community engagements, including scheduling, materials preparation, and documentation.
• Maintain accurate records, contact lists, and issue trackers to support proactive management of local public affairs activities.

Education

Bachelor's degree in Political Science, Business Administration or related field is required.

Work Experience

3+ years of experience in corporate public affairs, or a related field is required.

Skills and Abilities

• Demonstrated working knowledge of federal, state, and local legislative processes.
• Proven ability to use computer software and applications, including Microsoft Office, to share, retrieve, research and present business information.
• Demonstrated ability to negotiate successfully with state and community leaders to achieve desired business outcomes.
• Demonstrated ability to evaluate multiple scenarios and implement effective solutions to broadly defined business problems.
• Demonstrated ability to present complex ideas logically and concisely to diverse audiences at all organizational levels both verbally and in writing.
• Demonstrated high level of business acumen and knowledge of business strategy, process and energy industry policy issues.
• Demonstrated ability to establish rapport and effective working relationships with business partners, supervisors, and peers.
• Demonstrated ability to influence winning support of government personnel and local and regional business representatives.

Compensation & Benefits

We offer a competitive salary range of $95,400 to $138,075 per year, commensurate with experience, education, and skills. In addition, we provide a comprehensive benefits package including health insurance, retirement plans, and paid time off.

EEO Statements

The Company values diversity in its workforce and encourages United States military veterans and service members who meet the qualifications to apply.

For Canadian hires: AltaGas hires personnel on the basis of job‑related qualifications. All qualified applicants will receive consideration without regard to a person's ancestry, place of origin, colour, ethnic origin, citizenship, creed, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, age, record of offences, marital status, family status or disability or any other characteristic protected by applicable law.

For U.S. hires: WGL/SEMCO/AltaGas offers a total rewards package that includes competitive pay, incentive bonus plans, holiday pay, 401K matching and a wide array of benefits. These benefits including medical, dental and vision coverage are designed to help you and your family stay healthy. We also have paid time off (PTO) to balance the demands of your work and personal life. Available benefits vary depending on the specifics of the role. U.S. affiliates of AltaGas are committed to equal employment opportunity and providing reasonable accommodations to applicants with physical and/or mental disabilities. We value and encourage diversity and solicit applications from all qualified applicants without regard to race, ethnicity, religion, gender, age, national origin, marital status, sexual orientation, gender identity, family responsibilities, matriculation, physical or mental disabilities, political affiliation, genetic information, status as a protected veteran or any other characteristic protected by federal, state, or local law.