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Who They Are
Alpine Group is a bipartisan, bicameral government affairs firm founded in 1996 by Greg Means, a former Chief of Staff to Rep. Dennis Eckart (D-OH) and Staff Director for a congressional subcommittee. Headquartered on Capitol Hill — blocks from the House and Senate office buildings — the firm has grown from a small practice into one of Washington’s top 25 lobbying operations, billing $19.65 million from 108 clients in 2025 and $18.59 million from 104 clients in 2024.
Alpine is a subsidiary of Public Policy Holding Company (PPHC), a London Stock Exchange-listed entity that acquired the firm in 2020. PPHC also owns Crossroads Strategies, Forbes Tate Partners, Seven Letter, and O’Neill & Associates — giving the holding company combined federal lobbying revenue exceeding $69 million in 2023, surpassing Brownstein Hyatt as the largest single-entity lobbying revenue stream in Washington. The firms maintain separate brands and offices but share business functions.
The firm expanded to Texas in 2024, opening a DFW office in Southlake, TX. Alpine also formed Alpine Advisors in February 2021 with former Rep. Greg Walden (R-OR), who chaired the House Energy and Commerce Committee — creating a strategic advisory arm that sidesteps direct lobbying restrictions during Walden’s cooling-off period while maintaining client access to his policy network.
Means passed away in February 2023, but the firm’s identity as a tax-energy-defense-appropriations machine has only deepened under successor leadership.
Money
Alpine’s business model is pure Capitol Hill plumbing: a 72.2% revolving door rate means nearly three-quarters of its lobbyists are former government employees who now lobby their old offices. Founded by a former congressional chief of staff, led by former Appropriations and Energy & Commerce staffers, and strategically allied with a former committee chairman through Alpine Advisors — every piece of the firm’s structure is designed to convert prior government access into billable client revenue.
Client List
Alpine represents 108 clients across energy, defense, tech, pharma, manufacturing, and telecom — a deliberately diversified portfolio that ensures revenue stability regardless of which party controls Congress.
Energy & Utilities
- Shell plc (Shell USA) — oil & gas
- Duke Energy — electric utilities
- Equinor (Equinor US) — oil & gas
- Atmos Energy — gas distribution ($240K, 2025)
- NiSource Inc — gas utilities
- Tallgrass Energy — natural gas pipelines
- Murphy Oil — oil & gas exploration
- Vistra Corp — power generation
- NextDecade Corp — LNG export
- Edison Electric Institute — electric utility trade association
- Independent Petroleum Assn of America — oil & gas trade group
- Natural Gas Supply Assn — gas producer trade group
- Fortis Inc (ITC Holdings) — electric transmission
Defense & National Security
- Palantir Technologies — surveillance/defense tech ($240K+)
- Leidos Inc — defense IT/services
- CAE Inc (CAE USA) — defense simulation/training ($220K, 2025)
- Rebellion Defense — AI defense
- Advanced Technology Systems — misc defense ($170K, 2025)
- Cellebrite Inc — surveillance tech/forensics ($200K, 2025)
- Babel Street — intelligence analytics ($340K, 2025)
- Edge Autonomy — drone/autonomous systems
- Runsafe Security — cybersecurity
Tech & Surveillance
- Amazon.com (Amazon Web Services) — cloud/tech ($240K, 2025)
- ASML Holding (ASML US) — semiconductor equipment ($280K, 2025); export control crisis client — see ASML section below
- NEC Corp (NEC Corp of America) — telecom/IT
- Atom Computing — quantum computing ($240K, 2025)
- Gravy Analytics (Venntel Inc) — location data/surveillance
- Bastille Networks — wireless threat detection ($240K, 2025)
- Match Group — dating apps/tech
- Tenable Inc — cybersecurity
Pharma & Healthcare
- Amgen Inc — pharma ($200K, 2025)
- GSK plc — pharma
- Takeda Pharmaceutical Co (Takeda Pharmaceuticals USA) — pharma
- Emergent BioSolutions — biodefense pharma
- Jerome Stevens Pharmaceuticals — pharma
- Mallinckrodt Pharmaceuticals — opioid manufacturer
- Exact Sciences Corp — cancer diagnostics
- Boston Scientific Corp — medical devices
- Blackstone Group (TeamHealth Inc) — private equity healthcare
Manufacturing & Auto
- Ford Motor Co — auto manufacturing
- General Motors (Cruise LLC) — auto/autonomous vehicles
- Nucor Corp — steel manufacturing
- Siemens AG (Siemens Corp) — industrial manufacturing
- Trane Technologies — HVAC/industrial
- Eaton Corp — power management
- Holcim Group (Holcim US) — building materials
Telecom
- America’s Communications Assn — telecom trade group ($480K, 2025)
- Cellular One — wireless carrier ($360K, 2025)
- Telephone & Data Systems Inc (US Cellular) — wireless
- Hotwire Communications — fiber broadband
- NextNav — positioning technology
Financial Services
- International Swaps & Derivatives Assn — derivatives trade group
- XCF Global Capital — finance
- Berkshire Hathaway (BNSF Railway) — rail/conglomerate
Contradiction
Alpine simultaneously represents Palantir Technologies (government surveillance contractor), Cellebrite (phone-hacking forensics tools), Babel Street (intelligence analytics), and Gravy Analytics/Venntel (location data tracking) — a surveillance industry cluster that collectively lobbies for expanded government contracts and weakened privacy protections. The firm also lobbies for Blackstone’s TeamHealth, which has been investigated for surprise billing practices, and Mallinckrodt Pharmaceuticals, which settled opioid-related claims.
The Revolving Door
Alpine’s 72.2% revolving door rate (13 of 18 lobbyists in 2024 are former government employees) is a core business asset, though notably zero are former members of Congress — this is a staff-level revolving door, not a politician-level one.
Key Revolving Door Hires:
Les Spivey — Principal & President (formerly CEO/Managing Principal)
- Former: Professional Staff Member, U.S. Senate Committee on Appropriations — served under three different Chairmen
- Government Role: Coordinated Chairman’s federal funding priorities for Mississippi across 12 annual appropriations bills; coordinated congressional response to Hurricanes Katrina and Rita
- Alpine Role: Led the firm as CEO for 5+ years; transitioned to President in January 2025 focused on business development
- Value: Direct pipeline to Appropriations Committee staffers and processes — the committee that writes the checks
Keenan Austin Reed — Managing Principal & CEO (effective January 2025)
- Former: Chief of Staff to Rep. Donald McEachin (D-VA); statewide political director for Clinton 2016 campaign in Florida
- Government Role: Top policy advisor to McEachin on the House Energy and Commerce Committee; led work on climate, environmental justice, and rural broadband; served as Whip of the Congressional Black Caucus
- Alpine Role: CEO since January 2025; also Executive Director on PPHC Board of Directors
- Value: Energy & Commerce Committee access (jurisdiction over telecom, healthcare, energy, tech), Democratic caucus relationships, CBC network
- Notable: Founded the Black Women’s Congressional Alliance (300+ Black women Capitol Hill staffers) — a networking organization that also functions as a talent pipeline and relationship network
Rhod Shaw — Principal & Chairman
- Former: 35+ years of Capitol Hill experience in policy and politics
- Alpine Role: Chairman; leads bipartisan client relationships; made The Hill’s top lobbyists of 2021
- Value: Deep bipartisan relationships in both chambers; telecom, energy, tech, financial services specialization
- Notable: Also serves as Executive and Advisory Board Member for the FIPRA Network (global government affairs network in 50+ countries)
Greg Walden — Chairman, Alpine Advisors (strategic advisory arm)
- Former: U.S. Representative, Oregon’s 2nd District (1999-2021, 11 terms); Chairman, House Energy and Commerce Committee
- Government Role: Chaired the committee with jurisdiction over telecommunications, healthcare, energy, and consumer safety — oversaw approximately 40% of the U.S. economy
- Alpine Role: Chairman of Alpine Advisors (formed February 2021, weeks after leaving Congress); strategic advisory services in energy, tech, telecom, and healthcare
- Value: Former committee chairman access to Energy & Commerce’s full jurisdiction; initially restricted from direct lobbying during one-year cooling-off period (expired 2022)
- Notable: First client was Fox Corporation (political consulting on media/regulatory matters, March 2021)
Colin Brainard — Vice President (joined January 2025)
- Former: Tax staffer to Reps. Lynn Jenkins and Erik Paulsen on House Ways & Means Committee during Tax Cuts and Jobs Act passage; Executive Director, Joint Economic Committee; previously at Walmart Federal Government Affairs
- Alpine Role: Leads tax practice; hired January 13, 2025 specifically ahead of 2025 TCJA renewal debate — what lobbyists called the “Super Bowl” of tax legislation
- Value: Direct Ways & Means Committee relationships and tax legislative process expertise
- 2025 Outcome: Congress passed the 2025 reconciliation package (“One Big Beautiful Bill”) on July 3, 2025 — signed into law July 4. The bill included comprehensive TCJA extensions. Brainard’s hire timed the landing perfectly: January hire → May 12 Ways & Means proposal → July 4 signing. Alpine clients with major corporate tax exposure — Shell, Ford Motor, Nucor, Berkshire Hathaway/BNSF — all benefited from TCJA permanency provisions.
Abbey Overland — Vice President
- Former: In-house lobbyist at Palantir Technologies and Ursa Major (defense tech)
- Alpine Role: Defense and national security team lead
- Value: Defense tech client relationships; represents the reverse revolving door pattern — industry lobbyist joining a firm to bring client relationships rather than government access
Cornell Teague — Principal
- Revolving Door: Yes (OpenSecrets-flagged)
- Client coverage: Defense tech cluster (Palantir, Rebellion Defense, Cellebrite, NEC), clean energy (ClearPath, Radiant Nuclear), semiconductor (ASML)
Courtney Johnson — (Revolving Door flagged)
- Client coverage: Broadest client portfolio in the firm — healthcare, energy, defense, tech, environment; covers Palantir, Shell, Amgen, Blackstone/TeamHealth, Equinor, and 40+ other clients
Michael Haywood — Senior Vice President (Revolving Door flagged)
- Client coverage: Energy sector specialist — Equinor, NiSource, NextDecade, Tallgrass, Murphy Oil, Independent Petroleum Assn, Natural Gas Supply Assn, Edison Electric Institute
Money
The revolving door pattern at Alpine is structurally precise: Spivey brings Appropriations access (the committee that funds everything), Reed brings Energy & Commerce access (the committee that regulates everything Alpine’s clients do), Walden brings former committee chairman prestige, and Brainard brings Ways & Means tax expertise precisely when TCJA renewal is on the legislative calendar. Every major committee that controls Alpine’s clients’ regulatory and fiscal environment has a former staffer at the firm.
What They Deliver
Alpine’s top lobbying issues in 2024 reveal the firm’s policy machinery:
| Issue Area | Lobbying Reports | Clients | Lobbyists |
|---|---|---|---|
| Federal Budget & Appropriations | 174 | 48 | 18 |
| Energy & Nuclear Power | 129 | 36 | 15 |
| Taxes | 89 | 24 | 16 |
| Health Issues | 83 | 26 | 16 |
| Defense | 80 | 23 | 16 |
| Environment & Superfund | 75 | 21 | 15 |
| Transportation | 69 | 21 | 14 |
| Science & Technology | 58 | 16 | 13 |
| Trade | 41 | 11 | 13 |
| Aviation/Airlines | 41 | 12 | 14 |
| Medicare & Medicaid | 41 | 12 | 10 |
Appropriations dominates — 174 lobbying reports from 48 clients across all 18 lobbyists. This is consistent with Spivey’s Appropriations Committee background and the firm’s core competency: steering federal funding to clients.
Specific deliverables the structure enables:
- Tax policy navigation: Brainard’s Ways & Means experience positions Alpine to guide clients through TCJA renewal, clean energy tax credit extensions (IRA provisions), and corporate tax reform
- Energy permitting: The energy client cluster (Shell, Equinor, NextDecade, IPAA, Natural Gas Supply Assn) benefits from Alpine’s E&C committee relationships for permitting reform and LNG export approvals
- Defense tech contracts: The surveillance/defense tech cluster (Palantir, Leidos, Cellebrite, Babel Street) leverages Teague and Overland’s defense relationships for procurement access
- Appropriations earmarks: With 48 clients lobbying on Appropriations issues, Alpine steers federal funding across defense, energy, healthcare, and transportation
The TCJA Win and the ASML Siege (2025)
Two client stories from 2025 illustrate Alpine’s two modes of operation: proactive positioning and crisis defense.
TCJA Renewal — The Preemptive Strike:
Alpine’s January 2025 hire of Colin Brainard from Walmart Federal Government Affairs was the clearest example of preemptive legislative positioning in this cohort. Brainard arrived specifically for what the lobbying community was calling the “Super Bowl” of tax legislation: the renewal of expiring TCJA provisions. Tax Notes reported in August 2024 that lobbying on the TCJA rewrite was already swelling, with firms competing to position clients ahead of the 2025 debate.
The timeline of Brainard’s impact: hired January 13, 2025 → House Ways and Means Committee released proposed TCJA extensions May 12, 2025 → Congress passed the 2025 reconciliation package (“One Big Beautiful Bill”) July 3 → President Trump signed it July 4, 2025. The legislation made key TCJA provisions permanent, including the 20% pass-through deduction (§199A), bonus depreciation, and corporate rate stability. Alpine clients with major corporate tax exposure — Shell, Ford Motor, Nucor Steel, Berkshire Hathaway/BNSF, and Siemens — all benefited from TCJA permanency. Brainard’s Ways & Means committee relationships gave Alpine access to the markup process at the moment it mattered most.
Money
Brainard was hired on January 13, 2025 — six months before the TCJA bill was signed. The lead time is the product: clients who hire Alpine early get a lobbyist who helps shape the bill. Clients who hire late get someone who reads the bill after it passes. The $280K+ that major Alpine clients pay annually is essentially a retainer for access to the markup table.
ASML — Washington Lobbying in a Trade War:
ASML Holding NV (paying Alpine $280K in 2025) is one of the most geopolitically exposed companies in the world: the Dutch manufacturer of extreme ultraviolet (EUV) and deep ultraviolet (DUV) lithography machines has a near-monopoly on the equipment needed to produce advanced semiconductors. Both the United States and China want ASML’s technology; the question is who controls export access.
The pressure on ASML escalated significantly through 2024–2025:
- September 2024: The Netherlands expanded export controls on ASML chip tools, following US policy alignment — requiring licenses for additional machine types previously sold freely to China.
- January 2025: Netherlands further tightened controls on semiconductor manufacturing equipment effective April 2025, adding more inspection and measurement tools to the license requirement list.
- October 2025: A US House of Representatives panel publicly slammed ASML and Applied Materials, accusing both companies of “boosting China’s semiconductor industry” and “supporting its military” through sales of DUV systems. ASML had sold 70% of its DUV lithography systems to Chinese entities in 2024.
ASML’s CEO Christophe Fouquet responded by expanding the company’s lobbying presence in Washington, Brussels, and The Hague — warning that “intensifying protectionism under the guise of national security will ultimately slow technological progress for everyone.” The company’s market capitalization had shrunk by nearly half in less than a year under the pressure of export restriction uncertainty.
Alpine’s role with ASML is not primarily tax or appropriations lobbying — it is navigation of the Commerce Department, USTR, and the congressional committees (including House Energy & Commerce, where Walden was chairman) that shape US semiconductor export policy. The firm’s bipartisan relationships position it to make the case that blanket ASML restrictions harm American chip customers (AMD, Intel, TSMC’s US fab clients) as much as Chinese chip producers.
Contradiction
Alpine simultaneously represents ASML (lobbying against tightened semiconductor export controls to China) and Babel Street, Cellebrite, and Palantir (all of which lobby for expanded US government surveillance capabilities and stricter national security tech controls). ASML needs Washington to loosen controls; the surveillance tech cluster needs Washington to tighten them. Alpine profits from both sides of the semiconductor-national security debate.
The Bipartisan Model
Alpine’s bipartisan structure is architectural, not incidental:
- Democratic access: Keenan Austin Reed (McEachin CoS, Clinton campaign, CBC Whip), Les Spivey (served Democratic Appropriations Chairmen)
- Republican access: Greg Walden (former E&C Chairman, 11-term Republican), Colin Brainard (Ways & Means Republican tax staffers Jenkins and Paulsen)
- Bipartisan principals: Rhod Shaw (35 years, both chambers), Jason Schendle, Cornell Teague — all flagged as revolving door but serving clients across party lines
The firm’s founding story reinforces this: Greg Means (D-OH staff) built relationships across the aisle. The post-Means leadership transition from Spivey (Appropriations, worked for Republican chairmen from Mississippi) to Reed (Energy & Commerce, Democratic caucus) maintains the dual-access model.
PPHC amplifies the bipartisan architecture: The holding company also owns Crossroads Strategies (bipartisan, includes former Senate Majority Leader Trent Lott) and Forbes Tate Partners — allowing clients to access overlapping but distinct political networks through sister firms.
The Ohio Business Council — founded by Alpine Group — serves as a client-cultivation vehicle: a forum where companies with Ohio presence engage directly with the state’s congressional delegation, creating relationship-building opportunities that convert into lobbying contracts.
Billing vs. Outcomes
Lobbying-to-Policy Timeline
| Date | Recipient/Target | Amount | Policy Return | Time Gap |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017-2018 | Ways & Means Committee (TCJA passage) | Alpine clients’ fees | Tax Cuts and Jobs Act provisions benefiting corporate clients | Concurrent |
| 2020 | PPHC acquires Alpine Group | Acquisition | Holding company structure enables combined $69M+ lobbying revenue, London Stock Exchange listing | N/A |
| Feb 2021 | Alpine Advisors formed with Greg Walden | Strategic advisory fees | Former E&C Chairman provides energy/tech/telecom/health advisory access within weeks of leaving Congress | 1 month post-retirement |
| Mar 2021 | Fox Corporation | Alpine Advisors consulting | Political consulting on media and regulatory matters from former E&C Chairman | 2 months post-retirement |
| 2022-2023 | IRA implementation lobbying | $18.5M (2023 firm total) | Clean energy clients (Elevate Renewables, Topsoe, Sustainable Aviation Fuel Coalition) position for tax credit implementation | 6-12 months |
| Jan 13, 2025 | Colin Brainard hired from Walmart/Ways & Means | Salary investment | Tax practice capacity added specifically for TCJA renewal — the lobbying “Super Bowl” of 2025 | Preemptive |
| Sep 2024 | Netherlands expands ASML export controls | ASML lobbying fees ($280K/yr) | Dutch align with US restrictions — ASML must obtain licenses for additional chip tool types | Ongoing |
| Jan 2025 | Netherlands tightens further (ASML) | ASML lobbying fees | April 2025 effective date — more inspection/measurement equipment added to license requirements | 6 months |
| May 12, 2025 | House Ways & Means markup | Alpine client tax fees | TCJA extension proposal released; Brainard’s committee relationships access the markup process | 4 months post-hire |
| July 3-4, 2025 | Congress / White House (TCJA) | Alpine client tax benefits | Reconciliation (“One Big Beautiful Bill”) passes and signed; TCJA made permanent — Shell, Ford, Nucor, Berkshire benefit | 6 months post-hire |
| Oct 2025 | US House panel (ASML/China) | ASML lobbying fees | House panel slams ASML China sales as military-supporting; ASML market cap down ~50% YoY | Ongoing |
| 2025 | Defense/surveillance tech clients | $340K (Babel Street alone) | Palantir, Cellebrite, Babel Street, Leidos lobby for expanded government surveillance contracts | Ongoing |
| 2025 | Energy sector clients | $19.65M (firm total) | Shell, Equinor, NextDecade, IPAA lobby on LNG exports, permitting reform, fossil fuel subsidies | Ongoing |
Money
The Walden-Alpine Advisors arrangement is the cleanest example of how the revolving door actually works: a committee chairman retires, forms an “advisory” firm with his lobbying connections within weeks, signs his first client (Fox, regulated by his former committee) within two months, and transitions to full lobbying access after the one-year cooling-off period. The entire structure was pre-built before Walden left Congress.
Class Analysis
Alpine Group represents the professionalization of the Appropriations-to-industry pipeline. Its structural function in the donor-to-policy ecosystem is to convert congressional staff expertise into corporate access — specifically in the committees that control federal spending (Appropriations), regulate major industries (Energy & Commerce), and write tax law (Ways & Means).
The 72.2% revolving door rate is not a bug — it is the product. Clients don’t hire Alpine for its policy analysis; they hire it because its lobbyists used to write the bills, manage the earmarks, and staff the committee hearings. When Spivey coordinated appropriations for three Senate Chairmen, he built relationships that now generate $19.7 million annually in lobbying fees.
The PPHC holding company structure adds a layer of corporate abstraction: Alpine Group Partners LLC is a subsidiary of a London Stock Exchange-listed entity, meaning the lobbying operation’s profits flow to international investors. The professionalization of influence-peddling has been financialized — lobbying as an asset class.
The surveillance tech cluster (Palantir, Cellebrite, Babel Street, Gravy Analytics/Venntel) reveals the firm’s willingness to lobby for expanded government surveillance capabilities while simultaneously representing telecom firms and tech companies on privacy-adjacent issues. This is not a contradiction for Alpine — it’s diversification.
The Walden-Alpine Advisors structure demonstrates how “strategic advisory” functions as a legal fiction: the former E&C Chairman provides the same access and expertise that direct lobbying would, channeled through a separate corporate entity to manage cooling-off restrictions and public perception.
Sources
- OpenSecrets: Alpine Group Lobbying Firm Profile — 2025 (Tier 1)
- OpenSecrets: Alpine Group Lobbying Firm Profile — 2024 (Tier 1)
- OpenSecrets: Alpine Group Lobbyists — 2024 (Tier 1)
- OpenSecrets: Alpine Group Issues Lobbied — 2024 (Tier 1)
- OpenSecrets: Alpine Group Organization Lobbying Profile (Tier 1)
- The Hill: Lobbying World — Alpine Group Names New CEO (Tier 2)
- PPHC: Alpine Group Strengthens Defense and National Security Team with Abbey Overland (Tier 3)
- PPHC: Alpine Group Names Keenan Austin Reed New CEO (Tier 3)
- PPHC: Greg Walden and Alpine Group Form Alpine Advisors (Tier 3)
- Alpine Group: The Firm — Team and Overview (Tier 3)
- O’Dwyer’s: Walmart Alum Brainard Joins Alpine Group (Jan 13, 2025) (Tier 3)
- Dallas Innovates: D.C. Strategy Firm Alpine Group Expands to Texas (Tier 3)
- LegiStorm: Les Spivey Biography (Tier 3)
- LegiStorm: Colin Brainard Biography (Tier 3)
- Journal of Accountancy: Ways and Means approves proposed TCJA extensions and tax changes (May 2025) (Tier 2)
- Tax Notes: Lobbying Swells for TCJA Rewrite; High Tide Forecast for 2025 (Aug 2024) (Tier 2)
- CNBC: Netherlands expands export curbs on advanced chip tools (Sep 2024) (Tier 2)
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