Energy Practice
QGA Public Affairs (QGA) has established itself as one of Washington’s leading bi-partisan government relations and advocacy practices in the clean energy sector, representing a wide spectrum of leading clean energy companies, trade associations, and NGOs from around the world.
QGA’s energy team brings a wealth of technical and policy expertise and experience to the practice, having transitioned from top positions in various Administrations, Congressional offices and Committees, as well as from the energy and utility industry. QGA uniquely brings deep content knowledge to the federal policy arena to effectively translate complex technical energy issues into creative public policy solutions.
Tailored intelligence gathering and management –
We serve as our client’s eyes and ears in Washington, D.C., gathering intelligence catered specifically to individual client needs and managing the flow of information.
Relationship development and issue-area credibility building –
We build lasting relationships between our clients and key decision makers in Washington by establishing our clients as trusted resources on public policy and issues in their areas of expertise.
Congressional, federal agency, and White House advocacy –
Through education, third-party validation, relationship building, and creative policy solution development, we build powerful advocacy campaigns to affect legislation (for example: Senate Energy and Natural Resources, Finance, EPW, and Appropriations’ Committees; and House Energy and Commerce, Ways and Means, and Science and Technology Committees), regulation (DOE, EPA, FERC, DOD, GSA, DOT), appropriations, solicitation development, and other administrative actions (Executive Orders, Commissions, etc.).
Expert energy policy analysis, development, and advice –
Our team of energy policy experts work to match client’s needs with policy goals by tracking, analyzing, and developing legislation, federal program developments, solicitations, white papers, and influential media tools.
Strategic messaging counsel for Washington-specific audiences –
We translate our client’s business and organizational merits and goals into effective and persuasive language in Washington for Hill advocacy, DC press opportunities, and coalition building.
Association and coalition building and management –
We form collaborative partnerships to increase success in advocacy and manage policy efforts for trade associations, building consensus amongst diverse companies and organization’s differing views.
Federal program engagement and government procurement –
We provide messaging, policy counsel, and education campaigns to support our client’s efforts to obtain federal loans, grants, technical assistance, procurement contracts, and awards. Third-party validation – Leveraging our strong network of energy related media and think tank contacts in Washington and client’s “in district” network of supporters, we work to build outside consensus and support for our client’s policy goals.
QGA believes in a team approach that draws upon the full range of bipartisan talent, expertise, and relationships from our 25-person firm. The QGA team maintains strong relationships with the White House, a wide variety of Congressional oversight committees, the Department of Energy, the General Services Administration, the Department of Defense, other key federal agencies, and influential energy and environment think tanks and outside organizations in Washington.
Members of the QGA energy team include:
Jack Quinn
Chairman of the firm and former White House Counsel to President Bill Clinton and Chief of Staff to Vice President Al Gore, the strength of QGA’s government relations practice originates with Jack’s deep ties to many prominent Executive Branch officials who play a role in developing energy policy. Former Vice President Gore’s passion for solving America’s energy challenges has reverberated with Jack, and has been one of the cornerstones in developing QGA’s Clean Energy practice.
John Feehery
A regular commentator on CNN, Fox News Channel, and MSNBC and a regular contributor to CNN.com, Politico, and The Hill, in which he has a weekly column. John managed the communications operation for Speaker of the House J. Dennis Hastert and is the longest–‐serving top spokesman to a Speaker of the House. With John’s opinion pieces on renewable energy jobs, he has become a go-to liaison for renewable technologies to the Republican caucus.
Patrick Von Bargen
Having served in major public policy roles over 17 years in Washington, including as Chief of Staff to Chairman of the Senate Energy Committee Jeff Bingaman (D-NM) from 1987 to 1999 and Managing Executive for Policy & Staff for Chairman William H. Donaldson (R-NY) at the Securities & Exchange Commission from 2003 to 2005, Patrick is one of Washington’s leading energy and innovation public policy experts. He also served for three years as CEO of the Center for Venture Education’s Kauffman Fellows Program in Silicon Valley
Allyson Groff
Allyson combines legislative know-how with communications expertise. An experienced Washington government relations and communications professional, Allyson served as the communications director and spokeswoman for the House Committee on Natural Resources where she had the opportunity to advance the Committee’s agenda on a national level on a variety of energy and environment issues. Additional Communications and In-House Public Relations Services In addition to QGA’s government relations services, QGA’s talented team of communications professionals offers proven and effective energy-specific services in traditional and social media, advertising, crisis communications, and communications campaigns. Please inquire for more information on QGA’s communications practice.
Jeff Cramer
Jeff provides counsel and support to QGA’s energy and environment candidates. Jeff joined QGA after spending four years working in the clean energy industry as well as the environmental advocacy community. Most recently, Jeff led internal business development for Pacific Crest Securities’ Mosaic Group, a leading technology focused investment bank by engaging clean energy industry and energy policy experts in primary research projects for institutional investors.
Katherine Hamilton
With over 25 years of experience in energy policy, Katherine has worked to implement and promote clean energy policy solutions both as an engineer and administrator in the utility sector and as an advocate for the industry on the federal and state levels. Katherine Hamilton joined QGA after serving as the President of GridWise Alliance for more than two years. She was previously Co-Director of the American Bioenergy Association, where she advised the Governor of New Jersey on the biomass components for a state renewable portfolio standard