The mission of the D.C. Policy Center is to arm decision makers with fact-based, unbiased, and reliable research and analyses to help create a vibrant local economy that can maximize opportunities for residents, workers, and businesses in the District of Columbia.
Through objective and rigorous research and collaboration, the D.C. Policy Center develops and tests policy ideas, disseminates its findings, actively promotes policy solutions, and engages in constructive dialogue and debate.
We are objective and neutral. We are non-partisan, independent, and open-minded. We do not allow ideology shape our findings and recommendations.
We are grounded in data. We believe that objective data and targeted, high-quality analyses are necessary for a productive policy debate.
We are singularly focused on D.C. We believe that D.C.’s local public policy should be designed and evaluated in the context of the realities of the District of Columbia. Ideas that have a national appeal often miss the local economic context and local policy interactions.
We have a comprehensive view of policy. We believe that a strong and competitive economy creates the greatest range of options and the requisite resources for serving the needs of our city, especially our most vulnerable residents.
We care deeply about opportunity. Paired with economic growth, thoughtful policies can create the fastest path to shared prosperity.
We produce original research and analyses. We strive to be open and unbiased in our research and share our data, methodology and analysis to ensure full transparency.
We develop and test innovative policy proposals. We develop comprehensive policy proposals; we build coalitions to support those proposals; we engage executive and legislative leaders to promote those proposals; and we deploy the most convincing arguments and information in support of our ideas.
We are practical. We seek to affect significant changes over the long run, but also embrace incremental improvements and near-term trade-offs that create a path to gradually improving suboptimal policies.
We proactively engage employers in local policy. Our constant engagement of employers creates more opportunities for D.C.’s many stakeholders to come together to find common ground. It also allows us to build new repositories of data and information, glean insights on expectations about the city’s future.
We have the “long view.” We are as interested in the city’s future over multiple generations as we are in what happens in the next budget cycle. This ensures that our approach to policy is driven by what is good for the District and not by a short-term policy might be well-received by a particular constituency.
We draw credibility and reliability from our data-driven approach. We have invested heavily in high quality, comprehensive, and deep analyses free of ideology and dogmatic thinking. Consequently, we have built a reputation as the premier research organization with comprehensive coverage of policy issues important to the District, with full transparency as to how we conduct our research and how we are funded. Our credibility allows policy leaders to receive our policy solutions comfortably and confidently.
We vet our reform ideas and policy solutions with stakeholders. As we develop our policy ideas, we constantly check them with other researchers, the employer community, District agencies that would have to implement these reforms, and a broad set of advocacy groups. In these ways we ensure that our ideas have both policy and political buy-in.
We understand local policy operates in a system. An idea that looks good on paper will likely fail in execution if not rigorously checked against the economic and social realities of the District, and its interactions with other policies. We relentlessly examine policy ideas through this comprehensive lens to ensure that its implementation will be free of unintended consequences.
We are respectful and hardworking. Advancing growth-focused policies for the District requires direct and regular engagement with lawmakers, coalition building, creative ideas, sound political strategy, and hard work. We believe any idea can be debated and improved, and that people can disagree without being disagreeable or dogmatic.
D.C. Policy Center
1310 L Street NW, Suite 325
Washington, DC 20005
(202) 223-2233
contact@dcpolicycenter.org
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The D.C. Policy Center is an independent 501(c)(3) nonprofit. Our EIN is 82-2380479. From its founding in 2016 through December 31, 2018, the D.C. Policy Center was affiliated with the Federal City Council, a 501(c)(3) organization. As of January 1, 2019, the D.C. Policy Center is an independent 501(c)(3) nonprofit with full responsibility for its financial operations.
We are deeply grateful for the support of these organizations and individuals since the founding of the D.C. Policy Center, who have made our work possible.
Contributions of funds and contracts, by lifetime sum, from the D.C. Policy Center’s inception through July 1, 2021 are included. In the interest of transparency and disclosure, this listing includes donations as well as commissioned research products and contracts. Please note, this list is compiled and updated on an annual basis, and the below comes from our most recent annual report. The D.C. Policy Center strives to be complete and accurate in recognizing the generous support of our donors and research contracts.
Apartment & Office Building Association of Metropolitan Washington (AOBA)
CityBridge/CityWorks DC
DC Chamber of Commerce
Education Forward DC
Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation
Pepco, An Exelon Company
Quadrangle Development Corporation
Walton Family Foundation
Anonymous
Bill and Sunny Alsup
Arnold & Porter
Diane & Norman Bernstein Foundation
Katherine and David Bradley
EDENS
The Forge Company
PNC
Premium Distributors
Truist
Venturehouse Group
The Wilkes Company
Akridge
Brookfield Properties
Children’s National Hospital
District of Columbia Building Industry Association (DCBIA)
Downtown Business Improvement District
E&G Group
Hilton Hotel Corporation
Hines
The Hotel Association of Washington, DC
JBG SMITH
MedStar Health
Monumental Sports & Entertainment
Oxford Properties Group
Linda Rabbitt
Statehood Research DC
United Bank
United Way of the National Capital Area
Urban Impact Capital Fund
WC Smith
Anonymous (2)
Borger Management, Inc.
Boston Properties
Clyde’s Restaurant Group
Consumer Health Foundation
Deloitte
The Developer Roundtable
Doggett Enterprises, Inc.
Foulger-Pratt
Gould Property
Greater Washington Board of Trade
Hoffman & Associates
Holland & Knight, LLP
Host Hotels
Kimsey Foundation
Derrick Mashore
Eugene and Agnes E. Meyer Foundation
NoMA BID
Park Hotels & Resorts
Restaurant Association of Metropolitan Washington
Ruben Companies
Stonebridge
Urban Institute
American Beverage Association
Horning Brothers
University of Maryland
Perkins Eastman
Gerry Widdicombe
Amazon Smile Foundation
Jason Lee Bakke
Jacon Bracco
Richard Bradley
Colin Browne
Stephanie Custis
Elizabeth DeBarros
Betty Diggs
Jaime Fearer
Benjamin Freed
Merna and Joseph Guttentag
Furman Haynes
Lois Hollan
Judy Family Foundation
Steven Magel
Marc Mayerson
Yiting Nan Nan
Alex Posorske
Kerry Savage
Brooke Williamson
Bryce Yahn
Abigail Zenner
Anonymous (2)
To make a charitable contribution to the D.C. Policy Center, please visit our donation page, or contact our offices at contact@dcpolicycenter.org or (202) 223-2233. Thank you.
